# What doctor to see for wrist pain? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [November 22, 2010, 5:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-doctor-to-see-for-wrist-pain/561554 "2010-11-22T17:56:05Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Mama\_Zappa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/71e660/32.png) [@Mama\_Zappa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mama_Zappa)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2010, 5:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-doctor-to-see-for-wrist-pain/561554/1 "2010-11-22T17:56:05Z")
This is in the tissue of the hand, and of the arm just below the wrist joint, not the wrist joint itself. Happens when I move my hand wrong, or overuse the hand. It might well be carpal tunnel or another overuse injury, as it is my dominant hand. I need to do a followup visit with an orthopedist for other stuff in the near future and it’d be convenient to just consult him about this as well. But, would an orthopedist be the right speciality for what appears to be muscle or tendon problems? Or some other such as a physiatrist? Note that if I don’t consult the ortho, I will see my primary care doc before doing anything else. ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2010, 6:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-doctor-to-see-for-wrist-pain/561554/2 "2010-11-22T18:12:09Z")
Overheard at my ortho’s office: No, you can’t see him. He’s the wrist doctor. You need the shoulder doctor. I’d go with asking your orthopedist. ---
**Author:** ![Hello\_Again](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/85e7bf/32.png) [@Hello\_Again](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hello_Again)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2010, 6:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-doctor-to-see-for-wrist-pain/561554/3 "2010-11-22T18:27:16Z")
My GP referred me to an Occupational Therapist – a physical therapist with specialized knowledge of fine-motor issues, as seen in hand/arm pain. (My pain was primarily elbow and lower-arm pain). In addition to treating your pain, they can identify what is causing it and help you to modify your work/writing/computing environment to prevent reoccurance. ---
**Author:** ![Lanzy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/74df32/32.png) [@Lanzy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lanzy)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2010, 6:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-doctor-to-see-for-wrist-pain/561554/4 "2010-11-22T18:56:38Z")
The ortho place I use has an ortho specialist for every body part, but I would definitely use an ortho specialist. ---
**Author:** ![Napier](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ce73a5/32.png) [@Napier](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Napier)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2010, 10:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-doctor-to-see-for-wrist-pain/561554/5 "2010-11-22T22:49:04Z")
Yeah, ortho. They may not make you better, but they’ll definitely make you different. ---
**Author:** ![Mama\_Zappa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/71e660/32.png) [@Mama\_Zappa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mama_Zappa)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2010, 7:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-doctor-to-see-for-wrist-pain/561554/6 "2010-11-23T19:20:09Z")
Thanks, all! I’ll probably start with the ortho since I need to see him anyway and I can probably get in to see him in the next few weeks (want to get as much medical stuff taken care of before 12/31 since I’ve hit my out-of-pocket for the year and it’s all free-to-me). ---
**Author:** ![Rachellelogram](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rachellelogram/32/8689_2.png) [@Rachellelogram](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rachellelogram)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2010, 10:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-doctor-to-see-for-wrist-pain/561554/7 "2010-11-23T22:35:16Z")
Just a warning, if this is in any way relatable to an occupational injury, you will want to talk to your employer to file a work comp claim BEFORE seeking treatment. If you type at work for a significant portion of the day, make sure to do this. If you see the doctor on your own and then he tells you it’s probably work related, they may refuse to see you (if they don’t take work comp) or they may refuse to see you without a claim number (even if they do take work comp). And if you see a doctor before reporting a potentially occupational claim to your employer, it will be marked as questionable and harder to cover. Or don’t tell your dr it’s even potentially work related if you want to get it covered under your personal insurance. ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2010, 8:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-doctor-to-see-for-wrist-pain/561554/8 "2010-11-24T08:05:49Z")
I had a wrist problem twice, and I went to a hand doctor.