Skip to main content

Ganglion Cyst

I went to the orthopedist today so he could diagnose whatever is wrong with my wrist. He is pretty sure it's a small ganglion cyst.

The cyst is the shiny area right next to the boo-boo on my hand.
(Gotta love eczema in winter.)

What is a ganglion cyst?

From Google AI:

A ganglion cyst is a fluid-filled bump that usually appears on the wrist or near a joint or tendon sheath.

Ganglion cysts are round, small, and filled with a jelly-like fluid. They can feel firm or spongy, and can be translucent. They most often appear on the back of the wrist, but can also occur on the front of the wrist, base of a finger, ankle, or foot.

Most ganglion cysts are painless and don't cause other symptoms. However, if a cyst presses on a nerve, it can cause tingling or muscle weakness.

The cause is unknown, but they are thought to be caused by repetitive microtrauma. They are more common in younger people and women, and are often found in people who play sports or other activities that involve repeated wrist stress.

Ganglion cysts often go away on their own, but if they are bothersome, they can be treated with a brace or splint, drained with a needle, or surgically removed.

The good news is that it's not arthritis, and it's not a cyst related to cancer. The bad news is that, while it's likely to go away on its own, it could take a year or two. (Or it could pop tomorrow. Who knows.)

What caused my ganglion cyst? Piano? Typing? Pushups? Again, who knows. It looks like I will just need to take time off of piano from time to time whenever the wrist feels particularly painful. I'm not thrilled about that, but things could be worse. I'm thankful that it's not worse!

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

The Rusty Lock and Key

I'm in a room. There's a door in front of me. On the other side of that door is a whole world of adventure and imagination and joy and delight, but for the moment, I'm locked in this gray little room. The door itself has a lock that is all rusted. I've tried to open it in the past, but I've never gotten very far. Sometimes I try to scrape the rust off the lock. I also have a rusty old key that I occasionally try to polish. Each time, after I've made a little progress, I'll put it into the keyhole in hopes of opening the door. It turns a half a millimeter or so, but the brief excitement at my progress dies quickly when I realize, once again, the lock isn't opening. I set the old key aside, and from there I can forget about the door, the lock, and the world outside, for months—years, even. But then something happens—I hear birdsong, or I catch a glimpse of color—and I pick up the key and start picking away at the stubborn rust. That dark little room is my ...

March Goals Recap/Looking Ahead to April

It's April 1, and time to revisit the goals I set for last month. I practiced a total of 50.45 hours in March, averaging 1.62 hours (or just over an hour and a half) per day. Realistically, I practice about 45 minutes to an hour a day on weekdays, and I usually get at least one longer practice (or multiple shorter practices) in on one or both days of the weekend to bring the average up. CLASSICAL GOALS Chopin, F Minor Nocturne March Goal: Have entire piece by memory and performance-ready. I have about 90% of the piece by memory, but I still have some work to do before it's performance-ready. The only two sections that I don't quite have are "The Agitation" and the "stretto" section with the seventh chords. I'll work on both this week and will have them both memorized before the weekend. April Goal: Finish memorizing, and polish, polish, polish! My focus now is really on phrasing and dynamics. I have the notes down, even in the difficult passages. Fro...

Feb. 9 Practice

My February 9 practice was short and sweet. I worked only on the Liszt, playing in rhythms. Do you know how hard it is to play a piece in rhythms when the LH is even and the RH is all over the place, with 2-against-3 and later with 4-against-9? Don't worry--I'm not trying to be impeccably exact when I'm doing rhythms. And I've discovered what a *rut* I've gotten into with the Liszt. It's so beautiful, and part of me is content just to play it through, again and again, and be done with it. But rhythms are forcing me to look at the seamy underside, at the 0's and 1's that make this piece what it is. And it's not an altogether pleasant experience. But it's waking me up. The beauty of this piece has lulled me into a sort of sleepy complacency when I play it. I think that's why Deborah said not to play the piece through a single time this week. It is so tempting to just play it through and listen to the beautiful music. But when I do that, I'm...