Thenar eminence is a small fleshy area present at the base of the thumb. It comprises mainly 3 muscles. As it happens when we do work or other activities using our hands, we put pressure on these muscles and this puts a strain on these muscles. When this strain reaches a certain limit, it may cause pain or inflammation. Such pain which is caused by the result of strain put onto the thenar eminence is referred to as thenar eminence pain.
What Is Thenar Eminence?
Thenar eminence is a fleshy mound at the base of our thumb. It is made up of mainly 3 muscles:
- Abductor pollicis brevis (APB)
- Flexor pollicis brevis (FBB)
- Opponens pollicis (OPP)
Apart from the above 3, there is another muscle called Adductor pollicis which helps in the movements of the thumb. And all of these muscles are innervated by the median nerve which is a major nerve in the arm and hand, which provides movement and sensation to the thumb.
So all these muscles function together to make our thumb opposable. That is, they allow our thumb to grip various objects like a pen, pencil, mobile phone, and so on. In other words, without these muscles, we can’t grip anything nor can we do major work, as we usually rely on the thumb for such things.
Thenar eminence pain can be caused by a number of different reasons but the overall reason behind it is usually overuse or overexertion of muscles in the thenar region. Some of the conditions that can affect thenar eminence are Carpal tunnel syndrome, Thenar hammer syndrome, Blunt force trauma to the hand, Basal thumb arthritis, and Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS).
✅ Carpal tunnel syndrome is a condition that mainly occurs when the median nerve that runs through the wrist shrinks, which could result in pain, numbness, and even weakness in the hands and fingers.
✅ Thenar hammer syndrome is a rare condition that occurs when the radial artery, which is a major blood vessel that supplies blood to the forearm and hand, is damaged. As the name suggests, thenar hammer syndrome is due to the excessive use of the palm as a hammer of sorts, like when we use the palm to push, grind, or twist objects.
✅ Blunt force trauma to the hand is also another major cause of thenar eminence pain in some cases. Suppose that you were assaulted or involved in an accident, and you suffereda serious hand injury due to a collision against an object, then there is a chance that you may have strained or torn a muscle in the thenar region. This could in turn lead to compilations like acute pain or weakness in the thumb or even to deformities like ape hand deformity, which won’t allow you to move your thumb.
✅ Basal thumb arthritis is a special medical condition that happens when the joint of your hand becomes stiff and sore. It might cause a little pain when you move your thumb and sometimes it may cause swellings as well. Most commonly, this condition is found in elderly people when the bones of their body start to wear due to old age. It can also be found in people who may have suffered injuries to the joints of the thumb.
✅ Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is an extremely rare fatal neural disease, that affects the motor neurons as well as the muscle functions of our body, leading to weakness in muscles, shrinking of muscles, and in the worst case, it can even cause paralysis. Thenar eminence pain is an early symptom of ALS. The average survival time for a person suffering from ALS is 2 to 5 years, but there are several cases where the person outlived those years. Unfortunately, there aren’t any cures for ALS yet, but with a gradual increase in research and technologies in the medical field, it will be possible shortly.
Thenar eminence pain is one of the most common conditions found in people. In fact out of every 100 people it is most likely that at least 10 people will be suffering from it. But they are more common in people whose age is above 50 or 60. By this time, their body will start to wear from aging and they are most likely to suffer from thenar eminence pain. This is also commonly found in people who repeatedly suffer thumb injuries and in people who are overexerting or overusing their thumb past a certain limit.
How Is Thenar Eminence Pain Diagnosed?
The diagnosis of thenar eminence pain or any other pain is a process that typically consists of a wide range of steps from examining the patient’s hand and learning if there are any other similar injuries suffered by the patient in the past to conducting a wide range of tests to find the cause and the extent of the injury.
The doctors may ask a wide range of questions regarding the pain to find out more about the cause and origin of it. They also examine the hand and even try to reproduce the pain by pressing on the part where it hurts or by telling the patient to move their fingers.
If the doctor can’t find the cause or if he thinks the injury or strain to the hand is serious then he will persuade the patient to take an MRI, X-ray, or some other imaging tests to see the extent of the damage to the tendons in the hand suffered or to check if there is a torn ligament or to see if it has got something to do with the bone.
Other tests may also be conducted on the patient like the Thenar eminence compression test or Carpal tunnel compression test which can also be used to diagnose Thenar eminence pain.
What Causes Thenar Eminence Pain?
There are a wide range of things that can cause Thenar eminence pain. But most often the main reason is excessive use of our hand muscles around the thenar region, this exerts a strain on the said muscles and in time they begin to wear and we will have trouble moving them. This also results in pain, numbness, and tingling.
It can also be caused by traumas like when people get into an accident and injure their hands. Sometimes these accidents cause permanent injuries like deformities and nerve injuries.
Thenar eminence pain can also be caused by the repetitive strain put on the thumb when doing everyday activities or work-related stuff. This is mainly found in athletes and workers who mostly use their hands to do their work.
Age is also a major factor in thenar eminence pain. After a certain age, our body starts to wear and this results in pain in our joints and thenar region. The probability of thenar pain occurring in elderly is high if they had suffered any thumb injury or any other injury that may affect the thenar region.
Treating Thenar Eminence Pain
We can treat the thenar eminence pain in countless ways. The most important one is to just stop doing the activities that put strain on your thenar muscles, that is, on your thumb.
But in some cases, it is not possible because the said activity may be related to an individual’s work or it may be one of the things that said individual likes to do. For example, playing cricket or goalkeeper in football, the person knows that doing something may put a strain on his/her thenar muscles but they won’t just stop doing it cause doing such things tends to bring them happiness.
In such scenarios, said person can either visit a specific doctor of their choice or adopt a series of home remedies.
If it is just the starting stage of the pain, such that it may only cause mild discomfort, then you can do a warm water soaking or a contrast shower to help increase the flow of blood through your hands and to relax the muscles in that area. Massaging the thumbs regularly also works. But the most important factor is resting and trying to avoid the activities that cause the pain. Icing the area also works.
If the pain is progressing gradually, the doctors may prescribe you to wear a thumb splint. It basically prevents or restricts the movement of your thumb giving the thumb muscles a little rest and time to heal on their own. But the major drawback of this method is that it is not possible for us to wear the splint all the time. In such cases, the person can try other medical remedies like heat therapy, or anti-inflammatory drugs, acupuncture, or even steroid injections.
If none of the above-mentioned procedures work, then surgery might be needed. Normally, surgery may be conducted in case of deformities or fractures in the bones or in some cases of Thenar hammer syndrome and Carpal tunnel syndrome.
How To Prevent Thenar Eminence Pain?
In general, strengthening something is the best way to protect it. For instance, most people work out to strengthen their bodies and to increase their durability. The same can be done for all the muscles in our body including thenar eminence. Thumb flexing and extension is one of them. Similarly there are many more exercises like hand grip exercises, pinch strength exercises and so on.
Wearing protective mechanisms like splints also goes a long way. In case of jobs and other stuff that require frequent usage of the hand, try to take frequent breaks and stretching exercises whenever you can. It also helps in preventing thenar eminence pain to some extent.
People At Risk For Thenar Eminence Pain
The people who are at risk of thenar eminence pain are the ones who constantly overuse their hands like writers and certain athletes. Elderly people are also at risk of having the thenar pain since their bodies are gradually deteriorating due to aging.
People who work with computers, or who use vibrating equipment like drills in construction work can also suffer from thenar eminence pain.
Conclusion
So basically, Thenar eminence pain is a common condition that causes minor or severe pain in the thenar eminence region. It is due to the overexertion of certain muscles and once you figure out what exactly is causing it, then you can improve the pain by either avoiding that activity altogether or reducing it.
You can also adopt various home remedies to reduce the pain or you can do exercises to strengthen the muscles in the thenar region. After all, prevention is better than cure.
