Cold hands and feet

MUM1

I have OA in my knees,upper and lower back and right hip I also have carpal tunnel. At my last physio appointment physio said the joints in my fingers looked a bit swollen as I had said I was now getting pain in my finger joints and also down to my wrists also ache in forearm(right arm) upper arm (left arm). For some time now I have noticed that even though my hands are warm my fingers are very cold and despite wearing 2 pairs of socks (one of them thermal) my feet are always freezing more a hot shower seems to help with my feet. could this be due to bad circulation? Has anyone experienced anything similar? Thanks

barbara12

Hi MUM1
I have OA, and its only recently my hand has joined in, I had steroid injections in it a few months ago...but people keep commenting on how cold my hands feel..even the nurse at the surgery..my youngest GD shivers when I touch her...now you have got me wondering....sorry Im not much help..but I'm glad you mentioned it xx

constable

My hands and feet are nearly always cold. But I find that if I get a little bit cold, then the only way I can warm up is to have a hot bath. I have OA in various places now. Also as you the bottom and top of my spine, elbows, fingers sometimes join in as do thumbs and wrists.

Sorry I cant help with the circulation but I will be checking on your thread to see what other have to say. I am curious myself.

stickywicket

I've always had hands that are cold to the touch but they don't feel cold to me. My mother-in-law always had cold feet but no arthritis. It might boil down to circulation. Two pairs of socks might help the feet but the word 'thermal' has no instrinsic meaning. One pair of thin cotton ones topped with a pair of thick hiking socks might be better.

MUM1

Thank you all for your replies.Guess thats just the way of things with arthritis once you have it another pain/ache crops up elsewhere as well as other things.

dreamdaisy

I'm no expert on these things (none of us as we're not docs) but it may be worth mentioning to your GP on your next visit. Do your fingers turn blue with cold? Do they tingle when they warm up? Could it be connected to any meds you are taking? I don't know if cold extremities are a usual side-effect of any meds but, as we keep saying on here, we all react dfifferently to the same drugs. DD

MUM1

Hi dreamdaisy they(my fingers) don't turn blue when they are maybe just a bit whiter/paler and as far as I've noticed only seem to get tingling when they go numb with the carpal tunnel. Will maybe mention it to dr anyway.

dreamdaisy

Circulation problems can lead to blue fingers etc and as for the tingling I remember that well; I had my carpal tunnels done last November and that's all stopped which is a good thing. It might be connected to a squashed nerve but, not being a doc, I don't know so I think the GP is your best bet on this one. Good luck and I hope he/she can help. DD

ichabod6

Hello Mum 1,

google raynauds.org.uk.
You may have raynauds syndrome.

MUM1

ichabod6 wrote:

Hello Mum 1,

google raynauds.org.uk.
You may have raynauds syndrome.

Hi ichabod6 I googled raynaulds. my fingers and hands dont appear the same as in the picture illlustrated although I am employed as a cleaner so when using my henry to vaccum the metal hose can be very cold and can get pain and tingling in my hands fingers and wrists when using that or it may be that when I am gripping the hose that is causing the tingling and pain. A funny thing though is that when I am asleep at night or having a nap on the sofa during the day and wake up or just coming to from being asleep my nose is always very cold in fact probably freezing just didn't mentionthat as I thought it was a silly thing to mention but have commented to my OH how cold my nose is when I wake up. I am a bit iffy about mentioning to dr as it seems since my hysterectomy last August it just seems to be one thing after another. A few weeks after my hysterectomy I had a chest infection but felt as though it still wasn't right after antibiotics so dr checked my chest and said it seemed clear but gave me more antibiotics in case there was still something lingering and now even 5 months later it still dosen't feel right (still a bit chesty). My OH has copd so amtrying to look after my health so as not to pass anything onto him but feel like if you say to dr this or that isn't right feel like a hypochondriac, my OA got worse after op too aches and pains more often(now taking 50mg diclofenac and 2x30/500mg cocodamol 2 to 3 times daily whereas before the op found that I coped reasonably well on maybe 1 diclofenac and maybe 2x 8/500mg cocodamol to get me through my shift at work. I also had the sickness and diahorea bug 3 times in the space of 4 months, and then dr had to refer me to physio in december as my right hip was quite painful causing me to limp as well as having spasms which felt as though my hip was about to give way hence dr prescribing me 30/500mg co-codamol 2 4 times daily had tried to cut those down to 1 along with diclofenac but had to up it to 2 again although am managing to get by on 2 rather than 3 diclofenac (most of the time now) and 6x2 of the cocodamol daily. I am due to see dr on monday as wrist splints physio gave me for carpal tunnel weren't helping had used them when pregnant with my youngest 15 years ago and they worked a treat so was a little dissapointed at that. Sorry for going on as I know a lot of people on here are in a worse situation with pain etc than I am. I am still managing to work albeit part time now rather than full time as I was up until 1 and a half years ago.

dreamdaisy

Any form of arthritis is progressive and degenerative. How fast it progresses and degenerates one's body is unique but mine has certainly moved on from when it began in April 97. I thought one bad knee was outrageous - how I'd love to go back to those halcyon days.

Yes, for some of us repeated trips to the GPs etc is necessary, and it's their chosen job to help, inform and maybe medicate us. Anything and everything is worth mentioning because we are not doctors and therefore won't be aware of what is or is not relevant information. DD

MUM1

Thanks dreamdaisy I had lower back and hip pain in my twenties but thought nothing of it as came and went. It was only when I was in my mid 40's and had painful and crunchy knees that I thought something isn't right here and physio said I had OA from then on it's been downhill and I know it probably wont get any better x

David50

MUM1 wrote:

I have OA in my knees,upper and lower back and right hip I also have carpal tunnel. At my last physio appointment physio said the joints in my fingers looked a bit swollen as I had said I was now getting pain in my finger joints and also down to my wrists also ache in forearm(right arm) upper arm (left arm). For some time now I have noticed that even though my hands are warm my fingers are very cold and despite wearing 2 pairs of socks (one of them thermal) my feet are always freezing more a hot shower seems to help with my feet. could this be due to bad circulation? Has anyone experienced anything similar? Thanks

Hi Mum1,

I have cold hands very often, this link to an NHS site might be of help, http://www.nhs.uk/conditions/Raynauds-phenomenon/Pages/Introduction.aspx

Dave

elnafinn

Hi Mum1

I have cold hands and feet - hands are generally much colder probably because one can put on socks and furry slippers/boots on etc but my hands always seem to be in and out of water - yes I do use rubber gloves but they do not keep hands warm ) I do not have raynauds and have put it down to poor circulation. I am generally a cool mortal and feel the cold more than others, it would seem. My mum is the same as me and my daughter so it seems to be running in a bit of a pattern. My daughter also gets hot very quickly if exercising. So do I but I cannot exercise most of the day, can I?

Elna x

lizzy100

i have raynauds, and hands and feet are always cold. so when they say are your joints warm, it can be hard to tell, or they feel warmer, but not boiling. :? i tried beta blockers for raynauds once but they gave me awful headaches, i tried other stuff too but couldnt take them either. i dont think drs tend to treat raynauds now, unless your fingers are falling off.

scozzie

Hi Mum1

I too have OA in my extremities, but whilst this latest cold snap has played havoc with my hands, and certain fingers in particular, progressing into my wrists I can't say my hands are cold to touch even though they feel like they're freezing when I've been outside, which seems to exacerbate the sorest joints. But I've always had warm hands, must mean I have a cold heart ... lol!

However, in some circumstances the odd tip of a finger/thumb will get painfully cold (even in warmer weather) as per raynauds, but without the discolouration one would expect with that condition.

Good luck in finding an answer.
Scozzie