Unbearable pain after carpal tunnel surgery and trigger thumb surgery, what could it be?

by Camille
(B.C., Canada)

I had carpal tunnel release and trigger thumb surgery 11 days ago.

I was taken to emergency after 7 days because of the pain. I saw the surgeon on the day after.

There is a lot of bruising but don't see any infection in either incisions. I commented that I found it hard to believe this pain was OK, shall I say. Part of the recovery.

So now it's day 11 and my ring finger still feels sprained and the pain at the base of my thumb is so intense, I feel nauseated.

On a scale of 1 - 10, it teeters on 9 and I have a high pain tolerance. Even the pain medication, oxycodone is not helping. Or should I be using Advil?

How long should I continue feeling like this?

I can get a picture tomorrow if that will help?



----




Joshua Answers:

Hello Camille.

You didn't enter your email on the notifications section, so I hope you find this.

It's been a few days, hopefully you are feeling better.

If there's no infection, then I chalk it up to the trauma caused by surgery. They cut through skin and connective tissue, and in the case of the trigger thub, cut through dense, IRRITATED tendon sheath, and probably shaved off some tendon and/or tendon sheath tissue.

So there was injury on top of insult.

Imagine spraining your ankle, and then stabbing the most painful spots with a knife a few times.

Doctors don't really say it, but SURGERY = INJURY. Sometimes it doesn't go as smoothly as one would like it to.


The best I can offer you to decrease pain is to start Ice Dipping as described on the How To Reduce Inflammation page. A LOT. As many times a day as you can for the next several days.

You had, and now have more, pain enhancing chemical getting pumped into the area, and your nervous system is VERY unhappy and frightened for your safety. Meaning, it's goign to try to protect you in ways that, unfortunately, have you hurt more.

Get that chemical out, it will hurt less.

Tendonitis is one thing. Getting cut into is something else entirely.


----------------------
Please reply using the comment link below. Do not submit a new submission to answer/reply, it's too hard for me to find where it's supposed to go.
And, comments have a 3,000 character limit so you may have to comment twice.
-----------------------



Joshua Tucker, B.A., C.M.T.
The Tendonitis Expert
www.TendonitisExpert.com