Fingers red, slightly swollen, and tingles

[b-dad]

ifubuildit we have not used that drill either. The one drill where she starts behind the rubber and takes two steps and goes into her pitching motion seems to bring it on the most.

I have video taped her motion and she is not locking her arm/elbow. I had her pitching coach look at it also and he felt the bend in her elbow was pretty good. So that doesn't seem to be the problem.

We have paid much more attention to her condition as she goes to team practice and we have pitched a few times since we started focusing on it. A couple things we have noticed is that even from hard overhand throwing they would get just a little red but not bother her or get swollen at all. She would take a break and throw easy and the color would return to normal after a few minutes.

The times when pitching both she and I kept an eye on it. When the symptoms appeared during her drills warmup we would take a break, have her hold her hand at a higher level than her heart for a few minutes. The color would start to return to normal. She would go through some full pitching (but not quite full speed) and the redness would come back a little, but not as much. If she really throws hard and maybe 10 pitches in a row, they got really red. We stopped at that point. If she took her time between pitches they would slowly return to normal. It seems like if she is really throwing hard and not taking much time between pitches the situation is magnified. Mike you may be right and it may be we just need to pace her practice a little more.

Regardless of our observations, this is not normal/common and I will keep going to doctors until we get someone who understands the issue and can help us figure out what we should do. I'll update the thread as we get more feedback.

 

[Amy in AZ.]

I have been thinking about your DDs problem for a while now and I have decided to throw this out there. VascularWeb: Arm Artery Disease

Good luck and I hope you find the problem, soon.

 

[b-dad]

Thx Amy. Time to do some more research and pass this along to her Dr.

 

[remind]

Btw, let's just say after throwing many fastball, is it correct that the side(the near index finger side) of the nail of the middle finger be bleeding? or should the bleeding happen at like, the top of the nail? in other words, does the middle finger act in a direction towards the origin of the ball?

How does one prevent the bleeding and sore around the nail?

 

[tojo]

Btw, let's just say after throwing many fastball, is it correct that the side(the near index finger side) of the nail of the middle finger be bleeding? or should the bleeding happen at like, the top of the nail? in other words, does the middle finger act in a direction towards the origin of the ball?

How does one prevent the bleeding and sore around the nail?

I would say first of all that any bleeding could be a problem. If I read what you are describing correctly, she is apparently pulling against a seam and coming around the outside of the ball at release. I'm not saying 100% this is the problem without seeing her, but I've seen this often and this can be corrected by adjusting her grip or having her focus on staying behind the ball at release. Does she roll her wrist as she releases?

 

[b-dad]

Well we finally have some news on my DD's condition. She had her third appointment with a Doctor (2nd specialist) and she was diagnosed with Thoracic Outlet Syndrone. It is basically a compression of the nerves or arteries along with the muscles in the area between the collarbone and the rib cage. We are waiting for a radiologist to examine the X-ray to see if they can determine if it is nerve related, artery related, or non-specific. Apparently it is a condition that is known to affect MLB pitchers.

Anyway, her condition appears to be somewhat minor or mild. The doctor said she does not have to stop pitching and it shouldn't be much of problem as long as she watches from overdoing it. Once we hear back they are likely to prescribe some physical therapy to help. I will post again when we learn more. Thanks Amy, your note on arm artery disease actually led me to this possibility and I wrote it down and gave to my wife before she took it into the Dr today.

 

[sagonzal2000]

Maybe it's a pinched nerve? Also, does your DD ice after practice? Hope that helps!

 

[Jennifer Langston]

Thanks so much for posting this query & outcome! I just started pitching again for our community college....after 10 years out of the game and am having problems with my hand swelling after 15 mins of practice. It turns bright red & retains tiny red almost vein-like marks as the swelling recedes. My coach had no idea what this is but now I'm certain it has something to do with TOS. I remember my last year of playing high school, I had been getting more & more swollen. I suppose its caused by pitching for many years, auto accident (whiplash) and poor posture. Again, thanks for posting this. If you hadn't, I might not have known until I developed more serious symptoms.

 

[stv]

My DD noticed this the other day for the first time. It was during the tarp drill. I just chalked it up as her doing many reps quickly.
We've never seen it during a game or when practicing outside on the rubber. I hope its nothing to worry about.

 

[Carolyn]

O.k. here I go, does she go to the chiropractor at all? The new young chiropractors are amazing. My daughter was having problems with neck, back of shoulder and she clicks in the wrist which will hurt if she lays off for too long then starts pitching again. This young lady was recommended to me. I was already seeing one but he was old school with very basic adjustments and was not helping my problem, sacro joint, and was given the name of this gal who was a softball player in college, bonus, and has been practicing (chiro) for 6 years. Well what can I say! My problem is due to a muscle imbalance, won't bore you, my daughters was muscle spasms as she is a power pitcher, a lot of muscles not your skinny natural speed machine. Anyways we went once a week for a month to keep everything in alignment and now she is doing amazing no pain whatsoever or discomfort. This gal adjusts every joint in your body, including your toes and no it does not hurt at all. So my daughter got her wrist, elbow,shoulders and neck. If your girls are putting a lot of power into their pitches and not keeping the muscles balanced as well as they should then they will start to feel tingling and numbness. Believe me it is usually a joint that is out of alignment. Once corrected and a few more times it will go away. I myself went to the doctors a few times and they were no help at all!

I would definitly look into it you won't be disappointed!