Hand osteoarthritis with mucous cysts

Thanks for your response John. I’m at Mayo Rochester now recuperating from a major foot surgery. Since I have 10 weeks non weight bearing, I think I’ll see if I can get it removed while I am here. I’m here for another two weeks then go home for Christmas then coming back here for my 6 & 10 week follow up staying for another month. My mucous cyst has been very stubborn and gets inflamed about every 2 weeks. I’ll get it removed since draining it doesn’t seem very successful. It isn`T very painful but sometimes can get pretty inflamed up to a 4 on pain level. It is more of a nuisance and kind of gross out in public since my fingernail is deformed.

My mucous cyst was similar to yours in that it wasn't very painful but it would get inflamed and I hated the way it looked. I had it removed in 2018 and it has caused me a huge amount of nerve pain that radiates up my arm and the cyst has now come back. I wish I had done more research on the outcomes of this surgery and most of all I wish that I had gone to a board certified hand orthopedist but for some reason I had thought this wasn't that big of a deal and I was wrong.

I had the exact same cyst as you. It seemed to happen overnight. I noticed as the days passed, it started to become more firm. I had heard about trying Aspercreme on it, and so I tried it. It went away in three days. I’m now trying it on my husband’s finger cyst, but he’s had it for years, and it’s really hard so I’m not sure if it will work as well. I’m applying it twice a day to his finger cyst.

I had a cyst like that too recently. This may sound crazy, but I had seen a video about this on YouTube using Aspercreme so I ran out and bought some. I rubbed it into the cyst twice a day for three days, and it’s now gone. I don’t know if this will work for everyone, but you could try it.

Katrina, That is very concerning feedback. Thanks very much for sharing. I’m really sorry that happened to you. 🥵🥵🥵 I was going to proceed with getting it removed but now rethinking everything. If Mayo could see me about it, I may get a second opinion. My hand surgeon in Corpus Christi said my kind needed to be removed for sure. I didn’t see anything about future problems so that is shocking.
I heard about the slight possibility of it coming back but that is concerning too. I’m glad I joined this Mayo Connect yesterday. Your message alone was worth doing it. Good luck to you.

jeff.... I am glad that you were not offended by my telling you of my experience. You already have a hand surgeon so you are much better off than I was. I think getting 2 orthopedic opinions is a good idea. Also, finding out how many times a doctor has performed this surgery and what the outcomes were is also a good idea.
Best of luck to you,
Katrina

Katrina, I am very glad what you said realizing there is a lot more to the surgery with complications like you had. My orthopedic hand surgeon didn’t mention anything like your experience but I don’t know him very well. I’d like to know everything before proceeding. I had surgery lined up and had to postpone it due to other issues plus didn’t want to get out of the water. I’m interested in any more feedback from others with a mucous cyst on their index finger. Currently my finger is not inflamed; just tired of the weird fingernail snagging on things.

I was told by a doctor that I have mucous cysts, but they don't look like it from pictures I've seen of others. There is a line of them starting at the top knuckle going down my finger. He said not to worry about it but I'm considering a second opinion.

@ gracemarie

Strange .. I had my shower a bit ago and while washing my hair my first joint beyond my nail on my index finger was hurting. It sorta looks like several tiny cyst grouped together close up .. but not close up looks like a hump on my joint. I have osteoarthritis in that joint.. so that is what I searched for and came up with this site that mentions several types of nodes: https://www.orthobullets.com/hand/6055/dip-and-pip-joint-arthritis . After reading this and looking up actual photos instead of illustrations I am still confused as to what it is. I have an appointment with an orthopedist PA-C in a couple of weeks for followup on a sprained wrist and will ask him what he thinks.

I attached some photos, but not sure what can be seen .. other than my pitiful nails. I need to get my protein up to help them and take a better care of them.

Ask to be checked for Erosive Osteoarthritis (EOA) which is exclusive to hands & less commonly to feet. If that is what you have, a referral to a Rheumatologist would be in order. Going to an Occupational Therapist was the best thing I ever did because there were so many adaptive aids available.