Clicking and Popping

Clicking and popping in the fingers or wrist is common and usually harmless. However, these noises can sometimes signal an underlying issue. Understanding the signs, knowing when to seek medical attention, and recognizing how treatment can help are important for keeping your hands and wrists healthy.

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Overview

Symptoms

Clicking and popping can occur even in healthy joints
Pain associated with clicking and popping
Limited hand function
Fingers or wrist getting stuck or locking up
Tenderness at the base of the finger or palm
Grinding sensations in joints (hand and wrist arthritis)
Clunking sensations in the wrist (scapholunate ligament injuries)

Causes

Is it harmful to pop or crack your knuckles?

This type of popping noise is caused by cavitation. Cavitation occurs when the joint is stretched, causing negative pressure in the joint, which pulls nitrogen gas out of the joint fluid and causes a popping sound. There is no evidence that popping your knuckles causes arthritis.

Common problems causing clicking and popping by location

Finger/Palm: Trigger finger is a condition in which the finger clicks or pops when you move it, and may even get stuck in a flexed or extended position. You may feel the click and some tenderness at the base of your finger, in the palm.

Trigger finger
Illustration of a hand condition called trigger finger

Wrist:

Triangular fibrocartilage complex (TFCC) injuries often cause pain and clicking on the small finger side of the wrist, which occurs when rotating the wrist (as in turning a door knob).

Scapholunate ligament injuries often cause pain more in the central and thumb side of the wrist, and you may experience more of a clunking sensation.

Hand and wrist arthritis (osteoarthritis) often causes clicking or grinding sensations in multiple joints.

Illustration of Osteoarthritis in the hand causing pain and stiffness.

Diagnosis

If the clicking and popping causes pain, limits your hand function, or causes your fingers or wrist to get stuck or lock up, this may signal a more serious underlying problem.

Identifying the location of the clicking and popping (finger, palm, wrist) helps determine the underlying cause, such as trigger finger, TFCC injury, scapholunate injury, or arthritis.

Why treatment matters

Take the next step

Our board-certified specialists are here to help you heal. They can often diagnose the problem in one visit and get you started with a personalized treatment plan. We offer a wide variety of treatment options.