Reply from CGH Therapist: Possible causes of water retention

Thank you for accessing our website. Your enquiry was forwarded to us.

There are many factors that can cause water retention. These include early signs of heart failure, renal failure, use of medications, peripheral insufficiencies or other underlying medical condition.

Moreover, the swelling on your mum's hand may be due to other conditions apart from water retention, which is difficult to determine without a physical assessment. Other possible causes could be arthritis, infection etc.

You may wish to discuss your mum's condition with the surgeon who has scheduled her for an operation. He will be better able to advise you on her suitability for acupuncture.

In the meantime, you may wish to try the following measure to reduce the swelling in her hand by elevating your mum's hand on 2 pillows while she is sitting or sleeping. This will help to draw water back into the body's circulatory system by gravity.

In the meantime, monitor your mum's hands for :
Increased swelling
Increase in pain and warmth
Presence of numbness or tingling, pale, white, blue or cold skin over hand or fingers

Should the above signs are noticed or if she experiences any shortness of breath or chest pains, you will need to bring your mother to see a doctor immediately.

We wish your mum the best of health.

Kind Regards,
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