Wrist splints and wrist braces have been shown to provide significant pain relief for patients suffering from a variety of conditions. People use wrist stabilizers not only for chronic conditions, but also for acute injuries, such as a sprained wrist.
Sprained wrists are one of the most common injuries people incur, and as a result you probably know that wrist splints are commonly used to treat sprained wrists. However, you might now be aware that wearing a wrist brace by itself is not enough to ensure you heal as rapidly as possible. Thankfully, we’ve put together a guide explaining how to wear a wrist splint for a sprain, and other tools you should utilize to help recover and prevent future injuries.
Intermittently Wear Wrist Splints
Using a wrist splint or wrist brace to immobilize the joint aids in symptom relief in a couple of ways. Most obviously, restricting the motion of your wrist prevents you from putting yourself in a position that agitates your injury. Immobilizing your wrist also helps ensure you don’t hyperextend your wrist, resulting in further damage.
It’s important, however, that you periodically give yourself breaks from wearing the splint. If you are wearing it throughout the day, take it off for 5-10 minutes. If you wear it overnight, take it off for a bit when you wake up. This will ensure that your wrist doesn’t get excessively stiff of weak while recovering.
Cryotherapy
The benefit of cryotherapy for a sprained wrist is two-fold. It will both aid your recovery, and relieve pain. Applying a cold pack such as the CryoMax Small Cold Pack to your injury helps reduce inflammation in your joint, promoting healing. And unlike most ice packs, the CryoMax Cold Pack is form fitting and comes with a strap to hold it in place around your wrist. As a result you can still utilize one of your hands to get things done while icing, rather than sit and watch TV for 20 minutes.
Stretch And Strengthen
Once you’ve recovered from your sprained wrist, stretching and strengthening your joint are crucial to preventing future injury. Sprains occur when you hyperextend your wrist. Because of this, t it is important to not only improve flexibility, increasing your range of motion. It’s also important to make the muscles supporting your wrist stronger, such that they prevent your wrist from exceeding its natural range of motion.
The information in this blog is not intended to replace the advice of a medical professional. Speak with your doctor before using any type of splint to determine the appropriate protocol for use. Life Wear Technologies LLC, disclaims any warranty or liability for your use of this information.