1. Take an Anti-Inflammatory Medication
The first step in treating joint pain in the hands is to take an anti-inflammatory pain-relieving medication. Ibuprofen is one such medication, and it's readily available over the counter in most supermarkets and drug stores. If the joint pain you're experiencing is severe, your doctor will probably prescribe a stronger medication. In most cases, you'll be taking your anti-inflammatory medication one to two times a day as long as you're experiencing pain in the joints in your hands.
2. Apply Pressure to Painful Areas
Wearing an elastic bandage around your wrist may relieve some of the pain you're experiencing. The pressure from the elastic bandage soothes tissues that are inflamed from arthritis or injuries, and protects irritated nerves in the joints. Wear the elastic bandage tightly enough that you can feel a noticeable pressure, but not so tight that it cuts off circulation to your hand. You can wear the elastic bandage for as long as you feel it's necessary.
3. Immobilize Your Hand
Wearing a splint often helps control joint pain in the hands, particularly whenever the pain comes from carpal tunnel syndrome. Continuing to move the painful joints may irritate them further. Immobilizing them protects nerves from further irritation and allows the affected joint time to heal. Splints can be worn on your wrists or fingers and during the day, at night or both, depending on the instructions you get from your doctor.
4. Have Joint Replacement Surgery
Finger joints and wrists can now be replaced with artificial versions. In some cases, this is the only way to relieve the joint pain you're experiencing, especially if the pain is caused from arthritis and the structure of the joint is heavily damaged. In joint replacement surgery, your surgeon will clean out any damaged tissues, bone chips and other debris from the joint space, and resurface the ends of the bones in your arm and hand in order to fit the joint prosthesis to those bones. When the painful parts of the joint are removed and replaced, there is usually no more pain, or at least a significant reduction in it.
