HOUSTON – Pregnant women often suffer from back pain and swollen feet, but there's a lesser-known ailment that can be just as painful.
According to doctors, a third of expecting women also experience excruciating hand pain.
"It was just really hot searing pain in both hands," said Genevieve Hartley, a new mother. "It starts pretty much with numbness in the hands and as I was sleeping, it would get increasingly worse."
While pregnant with baby Georgina, Hartley suffered from carpal tunnel syndrome, or pinched nerves in both wrists. Houston Methodist orthopedic surgeon Dr. Shari Liberman said about 30 percent of pregnant women suffers from carpal tunnel and De Quervain's disease, which is a painful inflammation of the tendons.
"De Quervain's is more common in women who breast feed just because of the unusual nature that we're holding our hands," Liberman said.
For mild cases, a splint can help. But for moderate to severe cases, Liberman gives patients a cortisone injection plus Lidocaine.
"It was almost instantaneous," said Hartley. "It was probably within two hours and it was gone."
Anti-inflammatories are not recommended for pregnant women, so some think they have to suffer until after giving birth. And even then, holding a baby can be too painful.
"I don't think that you should take time away from your baby," Liberman said. "I don't think that you should stop breast feeding if that's what you want to do, because there are very good non-operative treatment options. They don't affect the baby; they have little effect on the mom."
Liberman recommends talking to a OBGYN about hand pain and consider seeing a hand surgeon if necessary.