Blackberry Thumb : Symptoms, Causes, Treatment By Wrist & Thumb Braces

What is Blackberry Thumb?

Blackberry Thumb, also known as “Gamers Thumb or Testing Thumb” is a catchy word for a medical condition that refers to repetitive stress injury (RSI). It is usually caused by the frequent and heavy use of electronic gadgets such as iPad, Blackberry phones, etc., which results in hand ailments. Blackberry Thumb is a painful rubbing of the muscles and tendons around the thumb area near the wrist.

Some experts say that using too much thumb or thumbing too much can cause thumb injuries. Especially to those with underlying medical conditions like such as arthritis that can be aggravated through repetitive motion. If you are playing too many games on your phone or texting, you may easily have a Blackberry Thumb.

Blackberry Thumb is a degenerated medical condition that occurs when there is irritation or injury on the tendons and muscles of the thumb. It affects the ability of a person to move their thumb and causes pain and swelling.

What Causes Blackberry Thumb?

Some of the most prominent causes of Blackberry Thumb are:

Excessive or repetitive use of cellphone- for playing games or texting.
Workers performed rapid motion activities or overusing hands and wrists- such as construction workers or musicians.
Lifting heavy things.
Patients having medical conditions such as diabetes, arthritis, or seizure disorders are at a high risk of developing this.

Blackberry Thumb primarily develops in:

Increased housework or hormonal changes during pregnancy can cause this injury if you are pregnant.
In arthritis patients.
Injury on a hand or wrist can restrict the movement of your tendons.

How to Treat Blackberry Thumb/Treatment?

Multiple treatment options are available for treating Blackberry Thumb, depending on the condition and severity of the injury.

Some of the most common yet prominent symptoms of Blackberry Thumb are:

Tingling and numbness in the affected area.
Loss of sensation or coldness in the affected area.
Loss of gripping- or grip strength.
Fatigue or weakness.

Medications

Therapy

Therapy is one of the best treatments for treating Blackberry Thumb.
Do the exercises for strengthening your thumb, hand, and wrist- recommended by the therapist.

Other Treatments

Restrict or limit the movement of your hand.
Do icing daily on the affected area.
A brace or splint helps keep them straight and relax the tendons.
Avoid thumb activities- such as pinching or grasping.
If you have severe pain, then seeing a physiotherapist is the best.

Advanced Treatment

In some rare cases, a steroid injection is the best choice. So the Doctor gives the injection of corticosteroid. It is injected into the tendon sheath to reduce swelling.

Surgery

In some severe cases, doctors recommend surgery to treat Blackberry Thumb. First, the surgeon inspects the sheath surrounding the involved tendons in the surgery procedure. Then it opens up the space for the tendons to glide easily.

The Doctor also recommends the guideline about the aftercare of surgery. Physiotherapists also recommend some strengthening exercises.

What is the Best WRIST & THUMB brace for Blackberry Thumb?

A wrist and thumb brace helps limit the use of fingers so that you can rest them fully. In addition, a brace helps increase stability, alleviating the pain and takes the stress and swelling of the joint of the thumb. So choosing an excellent and reliable wrist and thumb brace helps relax the injuries to a great extent.

WorldBrace has produced high-quality wrist, thumb, and knee braces for over 20 years. We are the best and most trusted brace supplier in China. We offer a wide variety of braces catering to your problems, including, Thumb and Wrist brace, a neoprene brace, a brace for tendonitis, and a copper brace. We also deal in custom-made braces.

Blackberry Usage Increases Surgery on Thumbs

faq

How to avoid blackberry thumb?

A few tips to avoid blackberry thumb are: Avoid typing texts with your thumb and use your fingers, give breaks to your thumb while constantly typing something, and stretch your hands frequently to enhance blood flow.