Raynaud's syndrome

I have never heard this. What is the relationship? Not doubting but it has me perplexed… :thinking:

It can affect the nips!

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I get hives from heat and cold, but do not have the symptoms people are describing. I try to stay ahead of the temperature extremes and have been successful. I have Omniheat hat, jacket and vest. They really make a difference for me so that I don’t feel that immobilized when I try to stay warm. Living in temperate Hawaii is a big help and also now that we have split A/C so that I no longer get hot or cold, I do pretty well.

Unless a person is on blood thinners, adding ground flax or flax oil to your daily diet won’t hurt - and can be beneficial in many ways, per the Arthritis Foundation: Flaxseeds: Punching Above Their Weight to Fight Inflammation | Arthritis Foundation. It’s worth trying. I have added them to my morning oatmeal for years.

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I just experienced this for the first time yesterday, after being outside for about 20 minutes. Only in 2 fingers. It freaked me out and I googled and discovered this syndrome, which I’d never heard of before. I have no known underlying conditions…but I am thinking I should see a doctor and get bloodwork?

I’m not a doctor but I would probably wait and see if it continues to happen before I bothered going to a doctor for something that’s never happened before. That’s just me.

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I have Raynauds symptoms only occasionally and quickly resolved ;and like you only certain fingers involved). I have never been to the doc about it - not sure if I’ve even mentioned it!
Maybe see if it continues in frequency or if you have a well check coming up mention it then.

Also of course depending on any other health conditions you may have that could be related.

I think there are probably many people with mild cases that aren’t even aware that it is a condition with a name

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This is sort of how it happened with my husband. He had some tingling and the turning white one day and we figured it was a one-off. It has since happened a few times (it is very cold right now where we live.) It has been only a finger or two on each hand.

That’s the part that has me concerned, as Dr. Google tells me that developing it at this stage of my life is generally considered “secondary raynaud’s” and is caused by

Causes of secondary Raynaud’s include:

  • Connective tissue diseases. Most people who have a rare disease that leads to hardening and scarring of the skin, known as scleroderma, have Raynaud’s. Other diseases that increase the risk of Raynaud’s include lupus, rheumatoid arthritis and Sjogren syndrome.

  • Diseases of the blood vessels. These include a buildup of fatty deposits in blood vessels that feed the heart and a disorder in which the blood vessels of the hands and feet become inflamed. A type of high blood pressure that affects the blood vessels of the lungs also may cause secondary Raynaud’s.

  • Carpal tunnel syndrome. This condition involves pressure on a major nerve to the hand. The pressure causes numbness and pain in the hand that can make the hand react more to cold temperatures.

  • Repeated actions or vibration. Typing, playing piano or doing movements like that for long periods can cause overuse injuries. So can using vibrating tools, such as jackhammers.

  • Smoking. Smoking narrows blood vessels.

  • Injuries to the hands or feet. Examples include a wrist break, surgery or frostbite.

  • Certain medicines. These include beta blockers for high blood pressure, some migraine medicines, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder medicines, certain cancer medicines and some cold medicines.

I have no known underlying health conditions, take no medications, have not suffered any injuries, don’t smoke…I guess I’d like some reassurance that there’s not an underlying health condition that I am not aware of.

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I’ve had symptoms that appear to be Raynaud’s a couple of times, and it may be getting worse. I also have something else funky in my left hand - the start of dupuytren’s contracture syndrome, or something like that. The Raynaud’s hasn’t been bad enough to do anything about. The other thing isn’t bad yet, and it may never get bad. A couple of people in my family have had it fairly badly though, so I will wait and see.

Doctor (dermatologist whom he had an appointment already scheduled for today) told husband not to worry, see if it continues or gets worst.

Dr. Google always covers the Worst Case Scenarios.

(I have Reynauds in my toes)

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If it makes you feel better, run it back your doc! It sounds pretty isolated (just once?) - maybe you’ll have more info to share with a doc as the winter plays out and you see if have additional occurrences.

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I have it. I find that mittens are better than gloves for sure, and when running in the winter, or riding on ski lifts, I ball my thumb up with my fingers. This makes a huge difference for me.

For Raynaud’s, an ANA blood test is so simple. It is not specific but indicates autoimmune activity.

@1214mom I have Dupuytren’s. I have been told it is not autoimmune. But I have sun sensitive lupus and could swear it is worse in the summer. Hand therapy can be helpful but I just stretch on my own.

I just talked with my daughter who happened to bring up that her office is cold and her fingers are constantly blue. As I wrote before, she had Raynaud’s in the past, now has erythromelalgia in the summer. Type 1 diabetes and celiac( both autoimmune), had many joint procedures starting at age 10 (now 35), positive ANA, premature arthritis, seizure disorder, but still no diagnosis. Rheumatology is so vague! She is not a complainer. Her fingers have probably been blue and painful for a couple of months and she has never mentioned it.

So what would you good people suggest for wearing in the office? Also would a space heater help? Oddly she runs very warm and likes the cold, but her fingers and toes don’t.

I invested in new touch sensitive gloves for the entire family (they are not move expensive than regular gloves). I learned that our old touch sensitive gloves were no longer working on our phones and therefore the 3 of us were taking off our gloves in the cold.

Maybe get your daughter those rechargeable hand warmers that she can use while at work.

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How about a little desk top heater - it is closer to the hands but her mid body down can still be “cool”. Or fingerless gloves.

Amazon Basics Ceramic Space Heater, Mini Heater for Office Desk, Portable Tent Heater (Indoor Use), 500 W, With Tip-Over Protection, Lightweight (1.4 LBS), Pink, 5.9 x 3.2 x 6 inches https://a.co/d/d4CfBfz

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Great thanks!

Most gloves are for arthritis and do compression. Maybe she could just cut the tips off regular gloves!

I’m sure there are lots of choices this time of year - here’s an example:

I tried to link from the SmartWool site but it wouldn’t post.

I have def in the past taken dollar store gloves and cut off the fingers for running purposes. But those gloves themselves are not very warm - the SmartWool ones would be.

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