Swollen fingers - one on each hand

[mikeps]

A friend of mine has had a problem recently which seems odd. His ring finger on both hands swelled up and were very painful. Just the one on each hand, but the same one on each. Has anyone ever heard of this problem before? I haven't and it just seems odd and I'd like to see if it has a deeper cause than just 'infection' as the doctor hear in Thailand told him.

[markblackmore85]

Hi, I have Psoriatic Arthritis, which is well known for causing random joint inflation and pain. They would appear 'infected' as they are hot and swollen, and you do not have to have psoriasis for it to start. Looking for other joint swelling, sausage fingers or toes, and white ridges in the nails.

[Jora]

Yes, I have experienced that during a flare. The same fingers are you mentioned.

There was inflammation and pain elsewhere in the body, but finger-wise, it was just those two. They are OK at the moment, thanks to a full arsenal of drugs.

I don't know if that is reassuring or otherwise!

Jora

[Hidden]

I have PsA and both my ring fingers go like this so much so that I had to have my wedding ring extended to be able to cope with the swelling and returning to the new norm.

[pollyanna56]

My sister in law had this problem [1 finger only] her doctor barely gave it a glance, and sad it was 'gout'? I was a little surprized, but it was her finger, and as far as i know she did not go back to the GP, - eventually the swelling went down. If it was my finger, I would have gone back, or done a little more investigation.

[nomoreheels]

I think you would be wise to suggest your friend seeks further advice. RD generally affects the small joints first. Mine was my toes but it's also commonly noticed in the fingers & is generally symmetrical.

I had a 3 month break from my meds due to returning to the UK from living abroad & needing to wait for a Rheumy to reinstate them & in that time being med free I flared quite badly. I had quite considerable problems in that time but what surprised me most was how my fingers swelled. I had no hand swelling pre diagnosis hence the reason for my surprise, my meds had obviously kept my hand inflammation at bay. Although all my fingers showed definite signs of inflammation it was worse in both ring fingers & bad enough to need to have my wedding ring cut off as it was cutting off the blood supply.

If your friend is also feeling lethargic, flu-like or has more than normal tiredness that could also be an indication that something autoimmune is going on. The finger swelling may be the first outward sign that he needs to be checked out.