Tony64

[Tony64]

Hi, every morning i wake up and my right hand is in a fist. I can open my thumb, little and ring fingers but not the other two. Very painful to pry them open and now getting harder to clinch a tight fist. Is there someone who might have any ideas. Thanks.

[honjen43]

Hi Tony Welcome to this site tho sorry you have to join!

Get a physio involved if you can. They will give you some exercises that may help.

Meanwhile, try soaking in warm water when you get up. It may help to wake your hand up. If you can get your hand to open up a little more, push a hanky inside it and try squeezing motions. That may help! It helps my arthritis, but yours likely to be complex!

Hugs

Jen xxx

[Tony64]

Thanks Jen, i did join.

[ssdw1958]

The only thing I have is not too much strength in my hand just saying you might want to call or if you can email your doctor I would let him know what is happening. Good luck

[aliciamq]

I do not have psp but do have what I call Pinterest hand!!!! lol - my hand gets to be awful/tired and I can really crunch it up while I'm sleeping --- SOOOO I sleep with my old rollerblading wrist guard on and it is fine in the morning.

[loustalet]

A few days ago there was a post about "bending". Related to body rigidity.

See below. they tried increasing the dose of Sinemet which is a medicine prescribed mostly for parkinson for as much as I know. From the poster it did give some results. May be it could work for your problem.

However I am just a "care-taker" of my wife and read as much as I can using my scientist background to try to understand and interpret. So this is just a suggestion. My wife took Sinemet for years ie for as long as she was wrongly diagnosed with Parkinson instead of PSP.

Would be glad to hear from you in case you find a solution or try Sinemet. It may help other people.

Post being referred to:

...........................

Bending

KarynleitnerKarynleitner a day ago 11 Replies

My husbands symptoms seem to be getting worse at an alarming rate. He is so rigid that he has a hard time bending, therefore it takes him a long time to be able to sit. It is so frustrating for him.

Submit reply

11 Repliesoldest • newest

Mp100

Sorry to hear about your husband's symptoms. These are consistent with my father's progression of PSP.

Regarding the rigidity - our GP prescribed an increased morning dose of Sinemet which (for a while) really helped with his movement in the mornings.

Hope this helps.

M

[Duffers]

Hi tony my hubby gerry has a problem with clenched hands. The OTs got him softish protectors which i put on him at night. Unfortunately he cant do physio but if you can then have a go and get something in place. His legs are beginning to go the same way.

Good luck with whatever you decide to do. Marie

[daddyt]

Hi Tony. I have a similar problem. Before trying to pry my hand open I soak it warm water and then gently pry my fingers back. I have an exercise that I do everyday for hands... seems to work for me and it's very simple. I call them finger pushups... open your hands and press your out stretched fingers together. I do this 50 times, whenever I feel more tightness, I simply repeat the exercise. During my regular exercises, I hold a tennis ball in each hand as my hand tend to clench a bit with certain exercises. Hope you find something that works for you.

[am2015]

My mum had the same problem with her left hand, she cannot open two of her left fingers. Her right hand has relaxed with Beclonfen and we do regular massage.

It's worth trying to put a small sponge to avoid the nails digging into the palm, if this is not possible then a handkerchief that can be washed on a daily basis. You must be careful about fungal infections which can be caused as the hand is closed and the moisture that builds up.

I hope this helps a little, I'm definitely going to be trying soaking my mum's hand in warm water.

[Dadshelper]

There is a disease called Dupuytren's contracture that can cause fingers to curl up also. My uncle has it and it usually affects 1-2 fingers. He had surgery to help lessen the effect and so far so good for him.

Tony have you been diagnosed with PSP or CBD? You don't state that in your post.

Ron

[Nanny857]

Hi Tony, I as wondering if a carpal tunnel wrist splint would help. I have carpal tunnel and wear one at night, it keeps my hand open and is not uncomfortable at all. Also get your GP or Neurologist to refer you to a physiotherapist.

Hope you find relief soon. Best wishes Nanny857

[AmandaF]

Hallo, Tony,

My mum also had contracture of her hands, just as you describe. Apparently, you can have a small operation to release the tendons but she chose not to. Instead, we did stretching excercises. Later on, we had to be very careful with daily hygiene to ensure that the skin inside her clenched fist was dry and clean, to prevent skin break down.

I have read of other people with PSP with this symptom.

Perhaps your GP can advise.

Very best wishes, Amanda.