Surgery for wrist ganglion?

Stebby

Cathlete
I've had wrist problems for a couple of years that started out as tendinitis and developed into a bump. Today I saw my doctor and she says I have a wrist ganglion. Given that it is long-standing and is hampering my quality of life, she is referring me to a plastic surgeon who will likely remove it.

Does anyone have experience with this? I would like some information on what to expect - was your problem corrected, did you regain correct wrist motion, etc.?

Thanks.
Stebby
 
WHY am I ALWAYS the one who has had the experience with the weird off the wall medical conditions???

Yes, I had this as a teenager. I had a ganglion right between the two bones in my right wrist. It was bad enough at times, that I could not bend my wrist forward at all. It was completely locked. I finally had to have surgery for it when I was a Junior in High School. I had to wear a brace on it for a while afterwards while it was healing, but I was back on the ice with a few days (I was an ice skater). I had no problem getting full use of my wrist back once it healed up. It was so much better. I will admit to you though that in college, it came back. It was never as bad though and it went away on it's own, so we're not sure if that wasn't some kind of weird scar tissue thing going on. You can also have them drained (ewe), but your chance of it coming back is much higher that way. The scar isn't too bad, but people still ask me about it all the time. It's funny because it's like belonging to a secret society because I will have other "ganglion cyst survivors" come up to me out of the blue and tell me "Oh, I had one of those!!!" when they see the scar. ;)
 
Thanks, Liann, this is helpful. I'm glad your wrist was so much better after surgery! I haven't been able to do pushups on my palms for over a year because my left hand doesn't bend either forwards or backwards, and I've had to modify my yoga practice to the extent that I've lost significant flexibility as well as strength. My doctor explained the draining option to me too, but it didn't seem permanent enough. I think I will probably go ahead with the surgery if the plastic surgeon recommends it.

Dumb question - is the surgery done under a general anaesthetic?

Stebby
 
They put me completely out for the surgery. I think that is pretty standard. And I so hear you on the pain in doing push-ups etc... I was also a cheerleader and a volleyball player during the time period I had it and boy did it cause a lot of problems. Even today, I opt to use something for push-ups - dumbells or the perfect push-up - in order to keep my wrist straight. It's been YEARS, but I've always been paranoid that I am going to do something to make it come back. It was a trauma to my wrist that originally caused it to pop up in the first place (bad fall on back of skate).
 
LOL Amber, you were the first person I thought of when I saw this post.

I have a ganglion cyst on the back of my right wrist. I think it started about a year and a half ago, the first time I did the 100 pushup challenge. Then I took a bootcamp class that involved a lot of pushups on concrete and other hard surfaces. Both were very hard on my wrist. I saw an orthopedic surgeon who specializes in hands/wrists that I had seen before for a different issue. He attempted to drain it, with no success. He wanted me to have surgery, but I was reluctant because the Cathe Road Trip was coming up. (And frankly, I was just reluctant to have the surgery.)

After I stopped doing so many pushups, the pain went away, and the bump got smaller. If I use pushup handles or the Cathe push-pull tower to do pushups, it doesn't hurt at all. I successfully completed the 100 pushup challenge again using the Cathe tower, and didn't have wrist problems. The cyst is still there, and can be seen when I bend my wrist, but it is smaller and rarely hurts. I am careful to use handles when I do pushups or planks (or I do planks on my elbows.) I never did have the surgery, and assuming that it stays like this, I don't plan to.
 
Oddly enough...

I have one coming back on my right wrist as I type this! The first one I had drained. I think I will hve this one drain too. My doctor never described it as potentially affecting my quality of life, but mine was somewhat small. I can only image how big they can get and I am sure it is not fun. Thanks for the post because if this keeps happening more frequently, I will opt for surgery.

Good luck with your wrist - I wish you a speedy recovery!
 
I have one on my left wrist that popped up when I was doing the 10 pushup challenge, I blame it on the pushups! Its about the size of a hazelnut. Doesn't hurt unless I fiddle with it. Dr says they are more common in women than men and unless it bothers me or gets bigger I should just leave it alone, and it SHOULD go away, but that may take up to a year. Otherwise I could go to an orthopediest to have it drained or removed. Says removal works better because it takes out the "shell" and the closes the "tunnel" that the goo in the cyst flows thru to get in there. Draining leaves the structure, so it is more likely to fill back up. Also said I could do it the old school way, which involves someone whacking with a heavy book to burst it. Says it works, but she won't do it. DH won't do it for me. I would probably end up in the ER with a broken wrist and DH in jail for hitting me:p So for now, I am letting it be. If it gets bigger or bothersome, I will revisit.

Nan
 
Oh snap! This post has me spazzin' out.

I have been dealing with deQuervain's tenosynovitis for almost a year and also have a lump that has formed. I've already been through two rounds of cortisone and a whole host of treatments from ice to chiropractic adjustment to MSM supplements to essential oils. At this point, I am a bit anxious about the next step. (My next appointment is Monday.)

Best of luck, Stebby, and please keep us posted!
 
I had ganglion's on both wrists. Had them drained for years and finally they wouldnt drain them anymore. I had the left one removed first and then the right one. This was in 1996 and 1998, I think. I was twilighted - not completely under - my choice. I would be out if I was to do it again.

Be prepared to be wrapped up good for a week, maybe it was 2 weeks. It was too long ago for me to remember. Then comes PT for about 6 weeks. You won't be able to bend your wrist - it is stiff. There is a chance they may come back. I'm thankful mine didnt.

Good luck!!
 
Has anyone ever had one on the outside of their wrist? It sounds like everyone here's had it on the top of their wrist, right? I have a large one on my right wrist, on the side below my pinky finger. It's about the size of a macadamia nut. And yes, I blame P90X's intense push up/pull up program :). I also have a smaller one on my left wrist, same spot, but not as noticeable. My dr's recommendation was to leave it alone for now. It's not bothering me very much, so the risks of the surgery outweigh the potential benefits. Apparently there are a ton of nerves in that area, and it would be difficult to surgically remove, or even drain, the cyst without causing some kind of nerve damage.
 
Then comes PT for about 6 weeks. You won't be able to bend your wrist - it is stiff. There is a chance they may come back. I'm thankful mine didnt.

Good luck!!

That's good that they sent you for PT. No PT here. It turned out fine, but PT would have been nice.
 
Stebby, I had a ganglion surgically taken out of my left wrist about 5 years ago. It was on the TOP of my wrist, above my actual wrist and at the base of my thumb, and it was quite huge, just over 1 full inch wide when they took it out (does that make sense?). I had decided on the surgery after trying a bunch of things, many of them old wives' tales about smacking it with a Bible, getting it drained, etc. It eventually started hurting when doing push ups and other stuff, so I decided to bite the bullet and have it taken out.

I had a plastic orthopeadic surgeon do it and the scar is very minimal, but visible. Doc said when they went to actually remove it from my wrist, it had a 'tail' that had wrapped itself around some of my veins and it 'tugged' on everything on its way out.....they said that's RARE, but that's what happened to me, they think, because I left it go so long. It was an out-patient procedure and I was wrapped up in a compression bandage for about 4 days. Then they took that off and I was instructed to keep my hand UP at all times to keep the blood from going back into the still-healing scar area. Well, I didn't listen and began working out after about 5 days, with running being my main cardio. With all the swinging of my arms, the blood and other liquids seeped back into the area and I had to have it drained with a pretty big and scary-looking needle, THREE TIMES because I wouldn't follow doctors orders.

ANYWAY.................I finally decided it wasn't worth the further delay so I stopped my workouts for about 2 weeks till I got the green light. At that point, I started with push ups from my knees with my hands on an 8" step. I lowered the step to 6", then 2" and eventually did push ups from my knees with hands on the floor. THEN, when I was FINALLY strong enough in the wrist, I was back to full-on toe push ups.

Sorry to ramble. But there ya have it.
 

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