Wrist cyst surgery

I decided to share my surgery story here to be a reference for anyone else debating having a cyst removed. I also have Tricare, so my procedure timeline will probably look different than a non-Tricare insurance provider.

At the end of September, I had an elective surgery to remove a ganglion cyst on my left wrist. I’ve had a cyst here on and off for about ten years, but this last iteration was really painful and bothersome. I bit the bullet and made an appointment with my Tricare GP back in May. Through their referral process, I was sent to an off-post orthopedic surgeon. I had three consults, an X-ray, an ultrasound, and an MRI (the cyst was small enough that it didn’t show up on the ultrasound, hence the MRI). I discussed my options with the surgeon, and I made the decision to have surgery because of the pain and the continuing issues like loss of grip strength. I booked surgery for the first available date after sorority recruitment (#priorities).

The whole surgery process was quite easy. I checked in and sat in pre-op for about an hour or so. The surgery lasted maybe 30 minutes, and I spent an hour in recovery. As I hadn’t eaten in over 15 hours, we stopped at Chick-Fil-A on on the way home. Never has a chicken nugget tasted so good. I slept off the anesthesia and felt pretty normal by the next day. I did have lingering pain in my wrist, but that was to be expected. I missed two days of work.

The recovery process was more challenging that I anticipated. I was told that I would have a surgical dressing on for a week, and I really expected to go back to full strength after that. The dressing was rather bulky, so sitting with my arm elevated was the most comfortable position. I also took a small pillow to work to place under my elbow. Not lying, almost every meeting I had that week, someone asked me if I had a question. I had the usual issues with a dressing or cast (trying to stay dry while showering, itchiness), and it came off with no issues. To my surprise, my inch-long incision wasn’t even fully scabbed over. That took about four more days. I was also surprised by the lingering pain. I had a limited range of motion until about last week because the tissue in the wrist was still inflamed.

If you think you have a cyst, definitely make an appointment with your GP. They are easy to remove, and your quality of life can really improve once they are gone.