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17-Year-Old With Constant Wrist Pain – No Diagnosis Despite MRI
Hello everyone,
I'm reaching out on behalf of my 17-year-old daughter, who has been struggling with severe, constant pain in both hands and wrists for over a year, with no clear diagnosis to explain it.
She was a competitive indoor climber, training 6 times a week for several hours each time. The pain began in May of last year, starting in the fingers of both hands (especially the second finger), and was later also felt in the base of both wrists, particularly on the thumb side (radial side).
What’s especially difficult:
She has completely stopped all physical activity for the past year, but the pain has not improved at all.
The pain is present from the moment she wakes up until she goes to bed, every single day.
Even simple tasks like brushing her teeth, writing, or washing her hair cause discomfort.
She now experiences clicking sounds in both wrists, which were not present before the pain started.
There was no traumatic event or major injury that triggered the problem — it came on gradually.
So far:
She has been seen by three orthopedic hand specialists and treated by multiple physiotherapists, but nothing has helped.
She underwent several MRI scans, but no abnormalities were found that could explain the pain.
We are feeling stuck and frustrated. Her quality of life has dropped dramatically, and no one seems to know what’s going on.
Has anyone else experienced similar symptoms — especially in young athletes?
Could there be less common conditions that don’t show up in MRI?
Any thoughts on next steps, treatment paths, or diagnostic tools we may have missed?
Any suggestions would mean the world to us.
Thank you so much,
A concerned parent
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For me I have severe chronic wrist pain as well. Does she play any instruments, type a lot, or craft? these fine motor motions could be causing irritation to her wrists. Especially if the pain was a build up from climbing. I highly recommend RICE and restrictive wrist braces. Unfortunately, if its tendonitis, it can take several weeks to a whole year before healing. However, because of the clicking, she might have arthritis, particularly osteoarthritis, can cause wrist clicking, grinding, or popping sounds because it erodes the protective cartilage in the joints, leading to friction between bones. This is often accompanied by other symptoms such as pain, stiffness, swelling, weakness, and a reduced range of motion.
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1 ReactionHas a sports medicine orthopedic seen her? Also consider acupuncture.
I had severe pain an weakness in my wrists once
I quit my job and iced and heated . Over time it cleared up but it was suggested that it was carpal tunnel caused by the repeat uses at my job .
I agree that cell phones can be a major cause …. 🤷🏻♀️
I understand that a lot… I’m 16, played rugby union for multiple years while still being an artist, I’ve caused myself many injuries to my hands that have for years been painful, a shifted tendon on my hand that grinds at every opportunity… I’m left handed and thankfully a lot of my injuries are on my right hand but I’ve got systems in place to relieve pressure from my wrists (by that I mean holding my hand down and pulling my wrist back and twisting it, sounds gross but relieves so much pressure)
Hands are such an integral part of day to day life it’s hard to function without them so we keep using them through injury