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Health

Numbness of the fingers of the right hand

, medical expert
Last reviewed: 23.04.2024
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Unpleasant numbness and tingling of the fingers usually results from a lack of blood supply to the hand, for example, if the person has been in a pose for a long time, during which the blood vessels are temporarily squeezed. From the point of view of medicine, this is perfectly normal. Moreover, bringing the hand into motion "disperses the blood", and everything is normalized. But when numbness of the fingers of the hand takes a systematic character and is often accompanied by pain and impaired mobility in the joints of the fingers, this is an abnormal condition.

It can talk about the presence of inflammation, diabetes, the pathology of the intervertebral disc or the beginning of multiple sclerosis. Also numbness of the fingers of the right hand is an indicator of peripheral neuropathy.

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Causes of numbness in the fingers of the right hand

Numbness of the fingers of the right arm arises for many reasons. Among them:

  • tunnel syndromes;
  • osteochondrosis of the thoracic and cervical spine;
  • cervical spondylosis;
  • a hernia of the intervertebral disc;
  • neck injury;
  • polyneuropathy in chronic alcoholism;
  • endocrine polyneuropathies in diabetes mellitus and hypothyroidism;
  • multiple sclerosis;
  • peripheral vascular disease (vasoconstriction due to the accumulation of cholesterol on their walls limits the flow of blood to the extremities);
  • Raynaud's disease (or Raynaud's syndrome);
  • pernicious anemia (deficiency of vitamin B12 in the body).

It should be borne in mind that with polyneuropathies, numbness of the fingers of the right hand is combined with the symmetrical numbness of the hands and fingers of the left hand and with numbness and impaired leg mobility.

With pernicious anemia (which in women is more common than in men), the pathology begins to manifest not only by the numbness of the fingers and toes, but also by symptoms such as weakness, shortness of breath, heart palpitations, diarrhea, and burning tongue pains - and spicy food.

But with Reynaud's disease (or Raynaud's syndrome), the numbness of the fingers of the right hand is due to the sharp spasm of the blood vessels in the fingers, which is accompanied by pallor and cyanotic hands, painful sensations and a constant sense of coldness in them. Among the reasons for this syndrome, doctors call not only a prolonged stay in the cold and frequent hand injuries, but also rheumatic diseases such as system scleroderma, systemic lupus erythematosus, rheumatoid arthritis, nodular periarthritis, etc. Reynaud syndrome can be caused by certain diseases of blood vessels, blood and central nervous system.

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Symptoms of numbness in the fingers of the right hand

Typical symptoms of numbness of the fingers of the right hand are manifested in the form of paresthesia. First of all, it is the loss of the exteroceptive (superficial) sensitivity of one or several fingers at once. In addition, there are sensations of itching and "crawling crawling," as well as burning and cold in the fingers.

With prolonged monotonous load or uncomfortable posture (when the hand is "stuck") this is due to a temporary violation of the blood supply to the limb, as a result of which the conduction of nerve impulses changes. If a few minutes after the change in the position of the body (or rubbing fingers) numbness passes, then this is the specified case.

With the constantly appearing numbness of the fingers of the right hand, paresthesias become a sign of either the pathology of any parts of the nervous system, or neurodegenerative processes, or autoimmune diseases (systemic lupus erythematosus). In this case, you need to resort to medical care.

Symptoms of numbness of the fingers of the right hand, as well as fingertips, as doctors say, mostly arise because of the damage to nerve fibers in osteochondrosis or are a consequence of compression of nerve trunks in pathologies of the peripheral nervous system.

Numbness of little finger and ring finger of right hand

Numbness of the fingers of the right hand is the most pronounced sign of tunneling neuropathies. Nerve trunks from the spinal cord to the tips of the fingers go through special channels, which in some places between the vertebrae narrow. It is in these places that the nerve is squeezed, which leads to the development of so-called tunnel syndromes or peripheral neuropathies, which account for 30% of diseases of the peripheral nervous system.

So, numbness of the little finger and numbness of the ring finger of the right hand can be the result of the syndrome of the cubital canal (ulnar nerve compression syndrome). The ulnar nerve, which conducts nerve impulses to the little finger and half of the ring finger, passes through the cubital canal located behind the inner side of the elbow.

Most often, numbness of the little finger and numbness of the ring finger of the right hand with neuropathy of the ulnar nerve can be noted when the elbow joint is long in a bent state. Therefore, so often on such symptoms complain those who work with the support of the elbow on the surface (table, machine, etc.). In addition, with elbow joint overloads in drivers and musicians, with injuries to athletes, as well as during work associated with vibration, the joint and ligaments thicken. As a result, there is a syndrome of the cubital canal and its symptom appears - numbness of the right little finger and numbness of the ring finger of the right hand, which can be accompanied by pain under pressure on the elbow and weakness in the hand. It is impossible to neglect the neuropathy of the ulnar nerve: it threatens the atrophy of the muscles of the hand.

Numbness of the right thumb

Carpal tunnel syndrome (from the Greek karpos - wrist) causes numbness of the thumb of the right hand, numbness of the index finger of the right hand, numbness of the middle finger of the right hand and half of the ring finger. In this case, the median nerve is squeezed as it passes through the wrist canal.

This happens from a constant voltage with a long static and dynamic load on one group of muscles and on the wrist joint (for example, when working at a computer, as well as at painters, seamstresses, violinists). This syndrome, narrow specialists are also called stenosing ligamentosis of the transverse ligaments: with excessive loads on the hand, tendons of the wrist joint swell and squeeze the nerve trunk. It is for this reason that the fingers grow numb, and often numb fingers of the right hand at night, and in the morning a person can feel the stiffness of the movements with his fingers.

Carpal tunnel syndrome can also occur with diseases such as arthrosis, arthritis, neurofibroma, hemangioma, etc. It is necessary to treat this syndrome, since the muscles of the thumb can be atrophied and the person can not bend it.

Numbness of the index finger of the right hand

With dystrophic disorders in the cartilages of vertebral joints - osteochondrosis - their elasticity, strength and shape decrease, which leads to pinching of nerve fibers. As a result, patients complain of pain in the neck, shoulder girdle and chest, frequent headaches, fatigue, blood pressure changes, dizziness and tinnitus, impaired coordination of movements, "flies" before the eyes. In addition, neurological manifestations of osteochondrosis of the cervical and thoracic spine are numbness of the index finger of the right hand. At the same time, numbness is often felt in the thumb.

Numbness of the index finger of the right hand can be a consequence of pathologies of the elbow joint, in the first place, such as arthrosis (epicondylosis) and arthritis. With arthrosis, the elbow joint begins to break down and becomes inflamed, which leads to pain giving to the wrist, limiting the mobility of the arm at the elbow, numbness of the fingers, and the inability to squeeze the hand normally into a fist.

And with arthritis of the right elbow joint, inflammation leads to impaired conduction of nerve impulses and numbness of the index finger of the right hand. Arthritis can occur as a result of infection, as well as after injuries or constant overloads of the elbow joint.

Numbness of the middle finger of the right hand

If, with a partial loss of the sensitivity of the index finger, numbness of the middle finger of the right hand is present, the doctors see the cause of this pathology in functional disorders of the intervertebral discs, cervical discs or muscles of the cervical region. These disorders occur with compression action on the nerve endings, which manifests itself not only in the form of paresthesia, but also weakness of the fingers, as well as pain in the forearm and shoulder.

Numbness of the middle finger of the right hand occurs when the distal processes of the nerve endings of the radial nerve are affected. That is, it is peripheral neuropathy, which can develop after stretching or nerve pitting, for example, with subluxation of the elbow joint. But the most typical cases are associated with carpal tunnel syndrome, which was mentioned earlier.

Treatment of numbness of the fingers of the right hand

Treatment of numbness of the fingers of the right hand should be aimed at the cause of this symptom. If the cause is in pernicious anemia, then the intake of vitamin B12 is prescribed. If numbness of the fingers of the right hand is caused by osteochondrosis, arthrosis, intervertebral disc disorders, then conservative therapy will include medication removal of pain and prevention of further dystrophic changes in the vertebrae with the help of physiotherapy procedures and physiotherapy exercises.

Treatment of numbness of the fingers of the right hand, appointed by the doctor in peripheral neuropathies (tunnel wrist syndrome and the syndrome of the cubital canal) is to take non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs and reduce the load on the joints with the help of special orthopedic devices.

In acute pain, a doctor can prescribe injections of corticosteroids into the joint area, and also apply drugs aimed at improving blood microcirculation, for example, trental.

Trental (analogues - pentoxifylline, pentylin, vazonite, etc.) stimulates metabolic processes and improves blood circulation in the tissues of the central nervous system, limbs and kidneys. It is prescribed for violations of cerebral circulation (with atherosclerosis), ischemic stroke, peripheral circulatory disorders of various etiologies, as well as paresthesia and Reynaud's syndrome. The doctor sets the dosage individually, usually 2-4 tablets 2-3 times during the day (after eating). However, in some cases, the drug gives such side effects as dizziness, headache, nausea, vomiting, stool disorders, stomach pain, redness of the face, violation of the heart rate, lowering blood pressure. Trental is contraindicated with a tendency to bleeding, with hemorrhagic stroke and hemorrhage in the retina, as well as during pregnancy and lactation. Those who suffer from severe arteriosclerosis of vessels, arrhythmia, coronary heart disease and sharp differences in blood pressure, this drug is administered with caution.

In the treatment of numbness of the fingers of the right hand - besides medications - physiotherapy (thermal procedures), massage, physiotherapy exercises (joint exercises, exercises for strengthening and stretching the muscles of the forearm), reflexotherapy are widely used.

If all methods of conservative treatment of numbness of fingers in tunnel syndromes do not give the desired result, then an extension of the carpal (or cubital) canal can be proposed surgically. This weakens the constant pressure on the nerve column, and the person ceases to feel the numbness of the fingers of the right hand.

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