Wrist Strain while Lifting Weights

Dear Ask The Doctor: Dear Dr., I am 30 year old man, 165 lbs., 5.9ft tall. Two months ago I was pulling weight down using a long rod (with palms facing up)at gym. As I was pulling it down, I felt my wrist was cracking but i continued. It swelled a bit the other day and off course there was pain. I applied Ice and wrapped it with wrist pad. 3 days later, it looked allright. I went back to gym but couldnt lift even 5 lbs. Wrist would hurt so bad. I quit gym completely. I took x-ray of my wrist. Doctor said no fracture but suggested me to take Aleve tablets, which I didnt take. I just tried to give rest to my wristst. Its been 2 months now but my wrist still hurts bad while lifting even a small weight (as less as 5 lbs). There is no swelling and I feel no pain when my hands are in normal position. But, it does hurt a bit when I bend my hand ( fingers towards wrist). I'd really apprecite your reply.

Dear Sarun: Wrist injuries can be amongst the slowest injuries to heal.

When dealing with wrist pain, it is important to know the mechanism of injury.  You describe an activity of pulling heavy weights which can often lead to ligament strains.

X Rays are a good first step in assessment. They rule out or rule in the possibility of a fracture.  If there is still concern about fractures from your doctor, a bone scan would be the next step.

If a fracture is not suspected, a soft tissue injury is likely. An ultrasound or MRI are often ordered to assess any soft tissue damage.  The MRI is a better test but an ultrasound may be more readily available.  The results of the imaging will determine if surgical repair of the soft tissue is required (rare) or physical therapy (more common).

If physical therapy is recommended, the average time to complete strength and healing I see in my practice is 3-6 months.