Any hand doctors here?

[WolfeMacleod]

Looking for a hand doctor that can tell me what a problem might be...

I discovered something in my left hand last night. A little disturbing.
On my index finger, immediately under the first line at the end of the the palm, aproximately in the center of the width of the finger..is a "thing"
A nodule...or something...about the size of a B.B perhaps. If I flex my finger, it moves a bit. Part of a tendon, maybe? I can feel it roll around it I mess with it.

It is slighty painful, but only if pressure is applied to it..which is frequent, since I play guitar....although not frequently.

Could this be the beginning of tendonitis or something bad?

[RickM]

I'm not a hand doctor but sounds like a Ganglion Cyst: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ganglion_cyst

Good luck.

[Flatbutt1]

sounds right to me, I get them in my wrist alot.

[WolfeMacleod]

Originally Posted by RickM

I'm not a hand doctor but sounds like a Ganglion Cyst: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ganglion_cyst

Good luck.

Ahh yep, that sounds like what it might be. I definately overuse that joint finger.

Can be taken care fo by aspiration huh? I can do that at home...

[RickM]

...or blow from a bible.

[Uber-fanatic]

Originally Posted by WolfeMacleod

Looking for a hand doctor that can tell me what a problem might be...

I discovered something in my left hand last night. A little disturbing...

Thought you were going to say "it's shiny, circular, metallic, found on the first finger to the right of my pinky, and it suddenly appeared there amidst a drunken orgy in Vegas around 4:30 this morning...vaguely recall an Elvis figure being involved..."

I was going to say "I have no idea what your talking about"

[cstreit]

Originally Posted by Uber-fanatic

Thought you were going to say "it's shiny, circular, metallic, found on the first finger to the right of my pinky, and it suddenly appeared there amidst a drunken orgy in Vegas around 4:30 this morning...vaguely recall an Elvis figure being involved..."

I was going to say "I have no idea what your talking about"

Hmm... My first thought was a hand-puppet dressed up in a doctors costume,,, or better yet, a sexy nurse... no, too easy.

[Jared at Pelican Parts]

it's a Ganglion cyst. I get one every few years or so. No big thing. It'll go away on its own

[Joeaksa]

I had one years ago. Would not go away so we cut it out. Has not come back...

[Tobra]

If it moves with the tendon, it may be a little damage to the tendon or the beginning of a trigger finger, or a small fibroma. Lot of things it could be, definitely not Lupus.

Is it fluctuant or solid? Ganglion cyst is fluid filled extrusion off joint or tendon sheath, DO NOT hit it with a bible or any other large book. Try ice and anti inflammatory pills until you can see a hand guy. Sometimes the fluid is too thick to draw much out, that has been my experience. Sort of fun to remove, if you do your dissection meticulously, you can get it out looking like a balloon.

[Noah930]

Like others have already written, sounds like a ganglion cyst. They typically happen in one of four places on the hand/wrist, and that's one of them (roughly located on the palm side of the knuckle?). They usually arise from either the joint/knuckle, or the tendon sheath. They're benign (non-cancerous). Think of the cyst as a little bubbling out of the synovial fluid that bathes the joint/tendon for lubrication--comes out kinda like caro syrup. Haven't tasted it, yet. You can either to aspirate it, though it may come back. If it does, and it still bothers you, a surgical procedure can be done to cut it out. Recurrence is rare after that. There are other things it may be--giant cell tumor of the tendon sheath, inclusion cyst, Schwannoma--but they're almost all benign. Seattle is loaded with excellent hand surgeons, so let me know if you need any names.