Ligaments attach your wrist bones to one another, allowing for ease of movement. If these ligaments become overstretched, overworked, irritated or torn, you could develop a wrist sprain. This can happen as a result of a fall or other trauma to your wrist. It can also be due to overuse, if you work in a job or participate in sports that require you to bend your wrist repeatedly. If you notice the signs or symptoms of a wrist sprain, you need to take steps to help it heal in order to avoid complications.
Pain and Swelling
Symptoms of a sprained wrist can vary and they depend the severity of the sprain. Common signs include wrist pain and swelling. You may experience a sharp pain at the time the injury occurs and then have persistent pain whenever you use your wrist. In other cases, your wrist pain might start off mild and then grow progressively worse.
Tenderness and Discoloration
The wrist area may be tender to the touch. You might also notice bruising or other kinds of discoloration indicating the wrist has been injured.
Other Symptoms
Your wrist may also become warm to the touch and you might hear cracking or popping sounds as you move it. If there is damage to the nerve, you could also experience numbness or weakness in your wrist or hand. The length of time to recover from a wrist sprain varies greatly and is dependent on the severity of your condition. In severe cases, you may develop a chronic sprain which might require surgery.
Sprain Grade
The symptoms you experience are dependent on what grade of sprain you have. A grade 1 sprain is considered mild and means your ligaments have just been overstretched. A moderate sprain, classified as grade 2, means that your ligaments have torn slightly. Grade 3 is a severe sprain and is diagnosed when your ligament is completely torn. The higher grade sprain you have, the more severe your symptoms will be.
