Thumb or wrist pain from my smartphone. Is it tendonitis? What to do and how to prevent it
This answer is a draft. It stays unpublished until legal review and source verification are complete.
As people spend longer using their phones one-handed, orthopaedic clinics in Japan report more complaints of "pain at the base of the thumb" and "pain on the thumb side of the wrist". The condition is nicknamed "smartphone tendonitis" or "text thumb", and left alone it starts to hurt in everyday movements too. Here is how to identify it and what to do.
Telling the symptoms apart
| Condition | Where it hurts | Features | Simple check |
|---|---|---|---|
| De Quervain's disease (stenosing tenosynovitis) | Thumb side of the wrist (near the bony bump) | Pain on moving or spreading the thumb, or gripping. Swelling | Finkelstein test: tuck the thumb inside the other four fingers and bend the wrist towards the little finger — sharp pain |
| Trigger finger | Base of a finger (palm side) | The finger catches or snaps when bending and straightening; worst in the morning | Pain on pressing the base of the finger |
| Thumb CMC joint arthritis | The joint at the base of the thumb (where it meets the wrist) | Age 50 and over; pain when pinching or opening a jar lid. The joint starts to protrude | Pain on pressing the base of the thumb; deformity |
| Carpal tunnel syndrome | Numbness from the thumb to the middle finger, worse at night and early morning | Numbness is the main symptom; shaking the hand eases it | Tapping the wrist sends tingling into the fingers |
| Simple muscle fatigue | Palm, forearm | Heaviness; settles with rest | — |
What to do, and prevention
| Stage | What to do |
|---|---|
| Onset (a few days) | Reduce the painful movement: hold with both hands, use your index finger, voice input, a stylus, rest the phone on a surface. Cool it (if swollen or hot). Over-the-counter anti-inflammatory patches |
| 1–2 weeks | Rest with a thumb-supporting brace (¥1,000–2,000) or taping. Warm it (chronic phase). Forearm stretches (palm facing forward, bend the fingers back, 20 seconds) |
| Over 2 weeks, or swelling, catching or numbness | Orthopaedic clinic. Splint, steroid injection (highly effective); if no better, surgery to open the tendon sheath (day surgery) |
- How you hold the phone: holding it in one hand and using the same hand's thumb puts on the most strain. Reaching the thumb to the top of the screen and continuous flick-typing rub the tendons. Use both hands and the index finger, a smaller phone if you use one hand, and a phone ring (bunker ring) to reduce gripping.
- Time: rest your hands at least once an hour. Avoid long sessions before bed (cold hands, poor blood flow).
- Who is prone: women after childbirth (hormonal changes plus lifting the baby), around menopause, diabetes and rheumatoid arthritis, jobs that use the hands (hairdressing, cooking, care work, piano, gaming).
- Children and teenagers: game controller buttons cause it too. Growing children recover quickly, but limit screen time if they complain of pain.
- Over-the-counter medicines: patches (loxoprofen, felbinac, etc.). Tablets only for a short period, given the strain on the stomach.
- Surgery: day surgery to open part of the tendon sheath, local anaesthetic, 15–20 minutes; most cases improve fundamentally. A common option when injections do not help.
- Preventive stretches: bend the wrist back (palm forward, pull the fingers down) for 20 seconds, stretch the thumb towards the palm for 20 seconds, open and close the fist 20 times. Several times a day.
[Verify] Check the description of the Finkelstein test and the place of steroid injections and surgery against materials from the Japanese Orthopaedic Association and the Japanese Society for Surgery of the Hand.
Misunderstanding 1｜It is overuse soreness; rest will sort it out
Inflammation of tendon and sheath keeps coming back as long as the movement that causes it continues. Change how you hold the phone; if it lasts over 2 weeks, see an orthopaedic clinic.
Misunderstanding 2｜Massage the sore spot and it eases
Massaging an inflamed tendon sheath can make it worse. Support, rest and forearm stretches suit it better.
Misunderstanding 3｜Wearing a brace weakens the muscles
A few weeks of support in the acute phase almost never causes a problem with strength. Immobilising the thumb for rest is part of the therapy.
Misunderstanding 4｜Injections are only a stopgap
Steroid injections are highly effective for tenosynovitis, and many people improve after 1–2. The number is limited, so pair them with changing how you hold the phone.
Misunderstanding 5｜Surgery is a big, frightening operation
Day surgery under local anaesthetic taking about 15–20 minutes is usual, and it is the standard option when injections do not help.
---
Sources
- Japanese Orthopaedic Association, "De Quervain's disease (stenosing tenosynovitis)" [ドケルバン病（狭窄性腱鞘炎）]
https://www.joa.or.jp/public/sick/condition/de_quervain_disease.html
- Japanese Society for Surgery of the Hand, "Hand conditions: tenosynovitis and trigger finger" [手の病気：腱鞘炎・ばね指]
https://www.jssh.or.jp/ippan/sikkan/
- Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare (MHLW), "Guidelines for occupational health management in work using information devices" [情報機器作業における労働衛生管理のためのガイドライン] (2019)
https://www.mhlw.go.jp/stf/newpage_05590.html
⚠️ Editorial note: the source URLs above were identified by search. Our working environment cannot reach go.jp domains, so the contents have not been checked against the text. Verify every source before publication and record who checked it and when.
About this article
What we share here are ideas and everyday practices passed down among people living in Japan, together with general information drawn from public sources. They are not official recommendations, and they are not professional instruction. Practices vary between households and regions.
This is general information. Results vary from person to person and depend on your own conditions and surroundings.
Please decide for yourself, using your own judgement, whether any of this suits your situation. We cannot accept responsibility for any damage, loss or injury arising from following this article.
This article is not meant to diagnose or manage any specific medical condition. If you are worried about your health, see a doctor rather than relying on your own judgement.
Sources
Tell us if this has changed
Approved contributions keep the contributor's name, shown in five languages.
Related questions
Other languages：日本語 ／ 简体中文 ／ 繁體中文 ／ 한국어
Value Village is not a government body. Always confirm procedures on the official site.
Written by Value Village from public sources. Nothing here is reproduced from another site.