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Having Pain And Internal Burning In Thumb. Is This Arthritis And What Are The Treatment?

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Posted on Tue, 30 Oct 2012
Question: I am a female, 39 yrs old, 5'6", approx 160 lbs, active but do not work out. I have had what I have always assumed to be arthritis in my thumbs for prob about 15 yrs now. Most commonly aggravated by the cold in the winter months & sometimes just from general overuse. Hasn't been that bad of an issue & flare ups are usually rare (few times a yr) & brief. Recently, I have had pain in the base of my left thumb accompanied by an XXXXXXX burning that has lasted & progressively gotten worse over the past week. Tiger Balm has helped but less so as time has passed the last few days. Pain & burning are both becoming quite an issue. Common for arthritis & easily managed??Burning is increasing in intensity & has rendered my left hand pretty much useless for a good part of the day, which sucks considering I have company coming in from out of town in 2 days to stay a week with us & I have a lot of cleaning to do!! Grrrrrrr............
Hope so!
doctor
Answered by Dr. Dr. Praveen Tayal (5 hours later)
Hello,
Thanks for posting your query.
The pain confined only to your thumb is likely to be due to gouty arthritis. Gout happens when there are increased uric acid levels in the blood and the uric acid crystals start depositing in the joint capsules causing the joint inflammation.
It can happen due to decreased excretion of urates by kidney, dietary changes or due to genetic predisposition.
It is associated with consumption of alcohol, seafood and meat.
Taking a diet XXXXXXX in vitamin C, dairy products and coffee is likely to help in improvement of symptoms.
Drink plenty of water daily to help the kidneys clear the uric acid. Reducing meat intake mill help a little. If it is causing you symptoms, you can seek medical help and ask your doctor to prescribe you some analgesics and specific medicines which increase the uric acid excretion from the kidneys.
I hope this answers your query.
In case you have additional questions or doubts, you can forward them to me, and I shall be glad to help you out.
Please accept my answer in case you do not have further queries.
Wishing you good health.
Regards.
Dr. Praveen Tayal.
Note: For further queries, consult a joint and bone specialist, an Orthopaedic surgeon. Book a Call now.

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar
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Answered by
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Dr. Dr. Praveen Tayal

Orthopaedic Surgeon

Practicing since :1994

Answered : 12310 Questions

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Having Pain And Internal Burning In Thumb. Is This Arthritis And What Are The Treatment?

Hello,
Thanks for posting your query.
The pain confined only to your thumb is likely to be due to gouty arthritis. Gout happens when there are increased uric acid levels in the blood and the uric acid crystals start depositing in the joint capsules causing the joint inflammation.
It can happen due to decreased excretion of urates by kidney, dietary changes or due to genetic predisposition.
It is associated with consumption of alcohol, seafood and meat.
Taking a diet XXXXXXX in vitamin C, dairy products and coffee is likely to help in improvement of symptoms.
Drink plenty of water daily to help the kidneys clear the uric acid. Reducing meat intake mill help a little. If it is causing you symptoms, you can seek medical help and ask your doctor to prescribe you some analgesics and specific medicines which increase the uric acid excretion from the kidneys.
I hope this answers your query.
In case you have additional questions or doubts, you can forward them to me, and I shall be glad to help you out.
Please accept my answer in case you do not have further queries.
Wishing you good health.
Regards.
Dr. Praveen Tayal.