Do you suspect the pain you are experiencing is really arthritis in your hands? Do you know the symptoms that are most commonly associated with arthritis of the hand? Discussing some of your symptoms with a doctor to determine whether or not hand surgery is the right treatment for your arthritis of the hands.

Having arthritis in your hand is a very common problem for many people, especially as people age. But, you cannot know whether or not you have arthritis until you see a doctor. So, making an appointment with a doctor will give you an idea about whether or not you will need hand surgery in the future. But before you have a surgical procedure straightaway, your doctor will need to evaluate your hands and prescribe certain treatments first.

You may think that having hand surgery is what doctors and surgeons recommend most when there is arthritis present in the hands. But, hand surgery may not happen until all other options are exhausted first. And, of course a doctor will need to evaluate all of your symptoms first before hand surgery or other treatments are determined. There are four common symptoms that doctors and surgeons will evaluate you for arthritis. Arthritis itself is an autoimmune disorder that causes inflammation in the joints of otherwise healthy tissue, and as it takes hold of these healthy joints it begins to destroy them, causing the symptoms to present themselves. These four symptoms include stiffening of the hands, swelling and painful joints, and when arthritis is really bad and left untreated, the fingers themselves will appear to be crooked.

However, while those four symptoms are what can help to make the diagnoses of arthritis, those alone will not determine whether you will need hand surgery to treat your problem. Pain and decreased movements will be the largest indicator or tell tale signs that a doctors will evaluate for when recommending surgery. Pain when moving the hands doing very mild movements or just daily chores is the most common symptom. Brushing your teeth, grasping at a door knob or turning on the water faucet can be extraordinarily painful for someone who is experiencing arthritis in the hands.

You know you have a problem when the pain starts to get in the way of everyday living. For many people, the pain associated with arthritis of the hands is the most telling sign that there is a real problem that needs to be addressed. But before you head straight for the operating room your doctor will most likely recommend anti inflammatory treatments first to rule out any need for a surgical procedure. They will also likely prescribe other treatments such as wearing splints and physical therapy exercises.

Hands down, pain is by far the biggest indicator for surgery. For some patients, the pain can be so substantial that it not only gets in the way of daily living, but can be excruciating. For these patients who are experiencing such an enormous degree of pain, it means that their arthritis is so advanced that there is no more joint tissue left, and the bones themselves are now rubbing against one another. When this happens, an artificial joint must be put in place through a surgical procedure.