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Tests and diagnosis
By Mayo Clinic staff
To diagnose de Quervain's tenosynovitis, your doctor will examine your hand to see if you feel pain when pressure is applied on the thumb side of the wrist.
Your doctor will also perform a test called the Finkelstein test. In a Finkelstein test, you bend your thumb across the palm of your hand and bend your fingers down over your thumb. Then you bend your wrist toward your little finger. If this causes pain on the thumb side of your wrist, you likely have de Quervain's tenosynovitis.
Imaging tests, such as X-rays, generally aren't needed to diagnose de Quervain's tenosynovitis.
References
- De Quervain's tendinitis (De Quervain's tendinosis). American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons. http://orthoinfo.aaos.org/topic.cfm?topic=a00007. Accessed June 13, 2012.
- South-Paul JE, et al. Current Diagnosis & Treatment in Family Medicine. 3rd ed. New York, N.Y.: The McGraw-Hill Companies; 2011. http://www.accessmedicine.com/resourceTOC.aspx?resourceID=52. Accessed June 13, 2012.
- Sheon RP, et al. de Quervain's tenosynovitis. http://www.uptodate.com/index. Accessed June 13, 2012.
- Bray J, et al. Evaluation of the patient with thumb pain. http://www.uptodate.com/index. Accessed June 13, 2012.
- Suttle AL, et al. Disc jockey tenosynovitis. The American Journal of Medicine. 2011; 124:e1.
- Peters-Veluthamaningal C, et al. Corticosteroid injection for de Quervain's tenosynovitis. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews. http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/14651858.CD005616.pub2/abstract. June 13, 2012.
- Amadio PC (expert opinion). Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minn. June 30, 2012.
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