Plumber With Ankylosing Spond. - Spread to Thumb - Help!

whitespirit66
whitespirit66 Member Posts: 2
Hello to all. I'm new to this site, and have been driven to seek advice in desperation.

I am 42 years old, and have had A.S. for approx 15 years. I have been lucky that my condition has allowed me to keep working, and after reading some posts on this site I realise that some people suffer with A.S. a lot worse than me.

My A.S. affects mainly my back/neck and ribs (never thought that sneezing could be so painful!), and I have had a nagging pain in my left hip for years. Of couse with A.S. you get the added inconvenience and pain of Iritis/uveritis. Over the years, I have taken different tablets (co-codomol, Diclofenac)for my condition when it took a turn for the worse, but have decided to suffer without medication as the side effects are often unpleasant and the bad stomach they give me would make working difficult.

2 months ago I started getting a slight pain in my left wrist, and 4 weeks ago the basal joint on my right thumb suddenly became very tender and painful. It looks like the arthitis is now spreading out to my hands.

I desperately need some advice about the pain in my thumb, as being a right-handed plumber, the reduced grip in my right hand is starting to make life very difficult. Has anyone any similar experiences? Is this situation likely to be permanent? Are there any anti-inflammatories or pain killers (especially new developments) I should consider trying? Would surgery be any help in restoring mobilty and strength to my thumb - if yes which type? Is there anything else I should consider?

Any advice or information from people with similar experiences would be really welcome.

Comments

  • tanith
    tanith Member Posts: 175
    edited 30. Nov -1, 00:00
    Hi just thought I reply as no one has so far.. I have O/A in multiple joints but my first experience was in my right thumb joint.. This has been for around 20yrs now and I have found I have flareups of pain when it is so bad I wear a support but these are few and far between and most of the time I can live with it, I do have reduced strength permanently. My surgeon when asked did say it was possible to replace the cartilege with some from another site in the body so it could be worth asking about that..
    I have been taking Rose-Hip tablets now for 4mths and have found its reduced the pain considerably in several of my joints including the wrist and thumb.. they are quite expensive but I am going to continue as the results seem good... I am also on Naproxen 500mg per day as prescribed by my GP...
    Sorry to not be any more knowledgable maybe have a chat with your GP who may be more helpful
    Our worst times are always our best lessons.
  • colinone
    colinone Member Posts: 1,039
    edited 30. Nov -1, 00:00
    tanith wrote:
    Hi just thought I reply as no one has so far.. I have O/A in multiple joints but my first experience was in my right thumb joint.. This has been for around 20yrs now and I have found I have flareups of pain when it is so bad I wear a support but these are few and far between and most of the time I can live with it, I do have reduced strength permanently. My surgeon when asked did say it was possible to replace the cartilege with some from another site in the body so it could be worth asking about that..
    I have been taking Rose-Hip tablets now for 4mths and have found its reduced the pain considerably in several of my joints including the wrist and thumb.. they are quite expensive but I am going to continue as the results seem good... I am also on Naproxen 500mg per day as prescribed by my GP...
    Sorry to not be any more knowledgable maybe have a chat with your GP who may be more helpful

    On Wednesday 8th April we are going to try and set a new record for most people being online at the same time on this site. I think the time is set for 6pm if you can join us please let BADGER know. If you can’t locate him have a look on CHIT CHAT FORUM under “are we going to break the record”. We need your help to do this so please join us.
    Colin