Wrist pain, no obvious injury

When I got into climbing, I immediately built a 20° wall. Not even a week after building it, I started to have sharp pain in my right wrist. I took a break, came back, still pain. I took a break, did rehab exercises, came back, still pain.

I noticed a lump on the inside of my wrist. Went to an orthopedic institute. Nothing showed on the x-ray, so the first doctor said it was a ganglion cyst. They gave me anti-inflammatory. That didn't help. Went back to the doctor and they gave me an MRI. Second doctor now says I have an extra muscle in my wrist. Says that it should have plenty of room to grow without pushing nerves, and I should be good to go back to climbing. Absolutely no explanation for why I've been having wrist pain.

I go back to climbing. Spent one day on real rock climbing easy 5.4-5.6 for a couple hours. Felt fine that day and day after. Now all the sudden the same pain is back. 

I already lost mountain biking from a knee injury, which luckily does not bother me while climbing. If I lose climbing too, I am not sure what I'm going to do. 

Take the data given by the Dx's to a PT. 

Edit:

And stay positive! 

Tip from an old guy with lots of experience.

Inflamation is caused by processed sugar.  Stop consuming all processed sugar product and you should notice rapid improvement.

Most people don't want to hear this and simply can't do it.  Many will actually get quite upset. Processed sugar is worse than heroin.

Keith S wrote:

Take the data given by the Dx's to a PT. 

Edit:

And stay positive! 

I will take a look around, but the orthopedic institute that I went to deals a lot in physical therapy. The doctor that viewed my MRI works very closely with physical therapists.  They said there was absolutely no sign of injury. Only the extra muscle. I even took information from the YouTube channel Hooper's Beta on wrist injuries, and did my own rehab for 5 weeks, and the pain immediately returned my first time back on the wall. I highly doubt I will be able to find a PT that knows anything about climbing injuries, since climbing is such a niche sport around here.  But I will try. 

Spider Savage wrote:

Tip from an old guy with lots of experience.

Inflamation is caused by processed sugar.  Stop consuming all processed sugar product and you should notice rapid improvement.

Most people don't want to hear this and simply can't do it.  Many will actually get quite upset. Processed sugar is worse than heroin.

They prescribed me prescription strength anti-inflammatory when they thought I had a cyst, and it didn't help. But I guess it wouldnt hurt to try cutting the sugars out. 

Describe the pain. Is it sharp? Does it hurt to do push-ups (bending wrist 90deg)

The most common type of non- traumatic wrist pain in climbers is probably “De Quervain’s tenosynovitis.”  Seriously. Try the “Finkelstein Test.” Seriously, that’s its name.
Close your fingers tightly around your thumb, as if making a fist around your thumb. Hold your forearm and wrist, with elbow joint at 90 degrees (forearm parallel to floor, and base of thumb up.) Have a friend flex your wrist in the direction of the floor, so as to stretch the thumb extensor tendon.
If this reproduces the pain, then you have DeQuervain’s tenosynovitis. The only treatment is resting the wrist. That means no climbing or other use of the affected hand/wrist, for probably 4-8 weeks. As far as I know, there is no effective treatment for DeQuervain’s tenosynovitis other than splinting and wrest. It is very common, and it will resolve, if you give the chance.
Don’t take my word for it. See a physician or physical therapist with interest and expertise in sports medicine, and get a real diagnosis from a real healthcare professional. I’m a retired physician and don’t count, because I cannot examine you.
Best regards,

Peter Lenz, MD

Christopher Payan wrote:

Describe the pain. Is it sharp? Does it hurt to do push-ups (bending wrist 90deg)

At its worst it is very sharp, but on average it is achy and stiff, with a little bit of sharp pain. It doesn't hurt to bend my wrist, But when I put weight on it like doing a push-up, it does start to hurt.

Peter Lenz wrote:

The most common type of non- traumatic wrist pain in climbers is probably “De Quervain’s tenosynovitis.”  Seriously. Try the “Finkelstein Test.” Seriously, that’s its name.

I heard about this test pretty early on in my injury. I have performed it three times in the last 2 months. The first time there was a little bit of pain. The second time there was absolutely no pain or discomfort. And now I just tried it again and there is less pain than the first time, but still discomfort. So I guess I'm getting a wrist splint on my way home from work today.

OK… probably not DeQuervain’s.
I would advise seeing a sports medicine physician or physical therapist, preferably one with some interest in climbing related injuries. A hand specialist orthopedist may be a good bet. You need a diagnosis, first and foremost. Ask your primary care provider or maybe even your local climbing gym manager for a referral.
Best of luck to you,

Peter

W J wrote:

At its worst it is very sharp, but on average it is achy and stiff, with a little bit of sharp pain. It doesn't hurt to bend my wrist, But when I put weight on it like doing a push-up, it does start to hurt.

That sounds like textbook TFCC tear, I asked because I have it too. Go on Amazon and order wrist widgets, and wear it on the affected wrist, you will be surprised to learn you can now function even up to 80% of capacity

Hi there!

It sounds like you've had a frustrating journey with your wrist but there are a lot of options which can be helpful. I will attach 2 articles from The Climbing Doctor blog below about TFCC pain and thumb-sided wrist pain. The blog is run by Dr. Jared Vagy, a doctor of physical therapy in Southern California, and has contributions from doctors of physical therapy who specialize in climbing around the world. These can help you determine what the source of your pain may be. There are also management strategies included in the articles if you feel like your symptoms align. Pain can also happen without injuries that would show up on imaging so it can still be helpful to seek the assistance of a medical provider for help.

If your symptoms don't align with these articles or you feel like you need additional help I would suggest reaching out to a doctor of physical therapy in your area. If there isn't one familiar with climbing, there are others around the US and in other countries who offer virtual assessments. 

TFCC: https://theclimbingdoctor.com/tfcc-injury-a-common-source-of-wrist-pain-in-climbers/

Thumb-sided wrist pain: https://theclimbingdoctor.com/thumb-sided-wrist-pain-in-climbers-2/

I wish you luck and feel free to reach out with any questions!

Spider Savage wrote:

Tip from an old guy with lots of experience.

Inflamation is caused by processed sugar.  Stop consuming all processed sugar product and you should notice rapid improvement.

Most people don't want to hear this and simply can't do it.  Many will actually get quite upset. Processed sugar is worse than heroin.

lol