A Brief Overview of Wrist Braces and Its Types
When you feel pain or numbness in the fingers, it could be indicative of carpal tunnel syndrome. Well, it is a common type of condition that generally occurs in people working in various fields. This condition occurs when you put too much pressure on the median nerve. The median nerve is the nerve of your body that provides sensory signals to all your fingers except the little finger. In some cases, carpal tunnel syndrome will go away with time with the use of some types of wrist braces. However, there are certain cases in which the condition could persist and the patient might require surgery.
In this article, a brief overview of a wrist brace and its types have been given. It aims to provide essential information on how a wrist brace can help you.
What are wrist braces?
A wrist brace is a type of garment that is generally worn in order to protect the wrist of people who are suffering from wrist pain or any type of pain in the area. It provides strong protection around your wrist which allows the condition to heal effectively. It is a very common rehabilitation method for those who have a wrist injury.
How does a wrist brace help?
When you sleep at night, it could generally result in the bending of your wrist. The bending of your wrist will, in turn, exert too much pressure on your median nerve. Moreover, when typing or performing activities that require the wrist to bend, immense pressure could be exerted on the wrist as well. A wrist brace will also help you by keeping your wrist at a straight and neutral position. One study found out that wrist braces can help provide relief to carpal tunnel symptom in a way that no other treatment procedure can. You might also find it so much helpful to wear it during the daytime. If you put extra pressure on your wrist, you will end up worsening the condition of your wrist pain. In that case, if your office permits, then you can choose from different types of wrist braces that would suit your needs while at work.
Where can you get wrist braces?
You can find different types of wrist braces at various medical stores. However, if you want to wear one that is custom made for your wrist, then you can go to an occupational therapist who will create one for you. When you wear the wrist brace, it should be snug on your wrist. However, make sure that the wrist brace is not too tight on your wrist because that will end up putting extra pressure on your wrist which would, in turn, increase the pain and discomfort experienced.
Types of wrist braces that you can use
There are many types of wrist braces that you can use to reduce your wrist pain. You can consult your doctor and get any of these wrist braces that will effectively help you to get relief from the pain you experience. Read on to know about the different types of wrist braces which have been explained in brief as follows:
- Arthritis gloves: When you experience pain in your body, sometimes, putting some heat on the affected area can help provide relief quite effectively. An arthritis glove does exactly that. It provides heat which, in turn, helps you to get relief from the pain and inflammation. Moreover, this type of wrist brace will create the right compression that is needed while treating wrist pain.
- Wrist wraps: Wrist wraps often have an open area near your thumb and provide support for your hand with metals. These types of wrist braces are ideal for those who want to work in the garden and those who work day in and day out on computers or play tennis as a professional sport. These wrist wraps could provide support extraordinarily to those experiencing unbearable and chronic wrist pain.
- Compression braces: When you experience pain on your wrist, wearing these braces will provide you the much-needed support and will prevent the area from swelling. However, you need to make sure that you are not putting too much pressure as that might aggravate your condition. One of the best ways to put an adequate amount of pressure without aggravating the condition is to use compression braces. These are designed to put the right amount of pressure on your wrists that will help you to prevent the swelling.
- Splints: When you are experiencing wrist pain due to arthritis, you would need to immobilize your wrist. When you do that, your wrist becomes stiff, and it helps to reduce arthritis to quite a certain extent.
Whenever you are experiencing wrist pain, before resorting to any kind of treatment option, you should first consult with your doctor. Your doctor will be able to provide you with the right treatment plan. However, in most cases, your doctor will ask you to use any of the aforementioned wrist braces that have shown wonderful results in providing relief for wrist pain.
