Cope With Having a Ganglion

Ganglion cysts rarely cause pain or other medical problems. If they do, follow your medical provider's advice on how to deal with this health condition. Medical treatment is usually not required for a ganglion cyst unless there is pain involved or the cyst becomes infected. Below are steps your medical provider may suggest as treatments for a ganglion cyst.

Steps

 * 1) Make sure it's a ganglion cyst. A doctor usually just has to take one look to recognize it as one, but if you can't visit the doctor just to confirm, consider the following:
 * 2) *If the ganglion is painful (35% of them aren't) the pain is usually nonstop, aching, and made worse by joint motion. If the pain is sharp or sudden, it might not be a ganglion. Consult a medical professional.
 * 3) *[[Image:Undefined 1788.jpg|thumb|Cyst at the scapho-lunate joint]]The most common location for these cysts is the back of the hand at the wrist, as shown in the introductory picture. They also commonly appear at the scapho-lunate joint (your inner wrist, close to the base of your thumb). Some less common locations for a ganglion are:
 * 4) ** The base of the fingers on the palm, where they appear as small pea-sized bumps
 * 5) ** The fingertip, just below the cuticle, where they are called mucous cysts
 * 6) ** The outside of the knee and ankle
 * 7) ** The top of the foot
 * 8) *If the suspected cyst is located elsewhere on the body, there's a very good chance it's not a ganglion, and you should have it checked by a doctor in case it's something worse.
 * 9) *The cyst may feel firm or spongy.
 * 10) *These cysts are more common in women, and 70% occur in people between the ages of 20-40.
 * 11) Consider leaving it alone. If the cyst isn't painful, the only problem with a ganglion is cosmetic. 38-58% of ganglion cysts go away on their own.
 * 12) Pursue one or more of the treatments discussed below.

Non-Surgical Treatment

 * 1)  Wear a splint to limit motion. It's thought that cysts are caused by trauma, where fluid goes into that part of the joint but cannot come back out the same way it came in. Limiting motion might reduce the amount of fluid that goes into the cyst.
 * 2)  Massage the ganglion cyst to encourage the fluid to leave the cyst. You may also find that adding gentle pressure for several minutes will reduce the swelling temporarily.

Surgical Treatment

 * 1)  Aspirating or draining the cyst. Your doctor may choose to drain the cyst.
 * 2)  The ganglion cyst can be pierced in several places to promote drainage and the collapse of the cyst. This is done by your medical provider.
 * 3)  Your doctor may elect to remove the entire ganglion sac and connecting tissues.

Warnings

 * Do not try the old-fashioned "Bible" method to remove the cyst. In the old days a heavy book, usually the family Bible, was used to smash the ganglion cyst. This type of cyst was often called the Bible cyst (or "Bible Bumps") for this reason. The cyst will probably come right back, and you might damage surrounding tissue in the process.

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Sources and Citations

 * WebMD Ganglion Cyst