The Hug You Didn’t Know You Needed: How Compression Garments Could Help

Reducing stiffness, swelling, and pain is why you might want to try compression gloves and socks for inflammatory arthritis. They aren’t for everyone, but here’s what to consider if you’re thinking of trying them.

If you live with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) or psoriatic arthritis (PsA), you might be familiar with heat and ice packs for pain relief. But have you tried compression?

I didn’t even know that compression gloves, socks, or other garments could help reduce my arthritis pain and swelling until 6 years after my initial diagnosis.

While studying for my master’s in occupational therapy, I saw compression gloves listed in my textbook under tools that might help patients with arthritis decrease their joint swelling, stiffness, and pain.

How could something so simple have a noticeable impact?

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My experience with compression gloves and socks

I was initially a bit skeptical — compression gloves sounded too good to be true. But I decided to give them a chance. I quickly became a convert.

The gloves improved my finger and wrist pain.

Did they magically take all my pain, swelling, and stiffness away? No. But they were a simple affordable solution that made everyday life a little more comfortable.

Eventually, I learned that compression garments included more than gloves. There were compression socks, sleeves for the knee and elbow, and even entire compression shirts.

I started wearing compression socks on the airplane to help with swelling and overall circulation. The socks helped my RA-related toe pain a bit, but I found that I had to be careful not to have them too tight around my toes, otherwise they would become squished uncomfortably.

To this day, I continue wearing compression gloves whenever I need a little hand pain relief.

What does the evidence say?

Surprisingly, there’s relatively little research dedicated to understanding the benefits of compression for inflammatory arthritis.

According to a 2014 review of studies, therapy gloves — including compression gloves — can lead to decreased hand stiffness, swelling, and pain in those living with RA. But the studies could not determine that symptom improvement was due to the compression.

In fact, another review of studies focusing specifically on compression gloves found most trials had errors, and any evidence for their effectiveness was inconclusive.

A small study from 2022 with 12 participants suggested that the warmth of any gloves — whether compression style or not — could help hand pain and function, but bigger sample sizes will be needed.

There’s also no evidence to suggest that compression garments work as a long-term treatment.

But they are widely recommended as potential aids to help reduce pain from inflammatory arthritis. My occupational therapy textbook said so! I know that they help me, and I know they’ve helped others — so how might they help you?

How might compression garments help relieve symptoms?

From a simple mechanical perspective, the pressure provided by the gloves may manually reduce swelling in the finger joints and promote the flow of fluid away from the fingers and back toward the core of your body.

The gentle heat produced from compression is thought to help loosen up stiff, swollen joints and improve circulation.

This can be particularly helpful for people with morning stiffness, a symptom often seen in forms of inflammatory arthritis like RA and PsA.

In general, pressure applied across joints (whether it’s the hands, knees, elbows, or other joints) also provides proprioceptive input.

“Proprioception” is your sense of body position, or where your body parts are in space as you move. It’s sometimes also called “kinesthesia.” For example, if you close your eyes and touch your nose, it’s your sense of proprioception that allows you to accurately bring your finger to your nose without using your vision.

Proprioceptors are located within the muscles, tendons, joints, and even skin. The gentle hug provided by compression can improve your body awareness during daily activities, and can even reduce your sense of pain by providing competing sensory input to your brain.

5 things to consider when purchasing compression gloves or socks

1. What design do you want?

For compression gloves, I first decide whether I want my fingertips in or out of the glove. Typically, compression gloves for arthritis end just before the fingertip so that you can do activities like typing and using your phone.

For compression socks, you might choose between ankle height or knee height, and between socks where the toes are covered versus uncovered.

2. What fabric and special features do you need?

I have a variety of compression garments for different weather and purposes. For example, I like the thin, moisture-wicking fabrics for sports or hot environments, and the thicker cotton ones for cold weather.

Some of my gloves also have grips on them which is helpful for when I do strength training or sports activities.

3. How tight of a fit do you prefer?

This is where compression garments are a little like shoes: everyone has different favorites depending on their unique physiology and simply what feels good to them.

I typically prefer a tighter fit for nighttime when I’m not going to be moving my fingers a lot, and a looser fit for when I need to move my fingers frequently — such as during functional tasks like cooking or sports.

In whatever circumstance, it’s important the compression doesn’t severely restrict your range of motion or cut off your circulation. Numbness or feelings of pins and needles would mean that your circulation is being cut off.

4. How easy will they be to get on and off?

This is particularly tricky for compression socks, which are infamous for being difficult to get on and off due to their tight fit.

Some come with built-in features that help you take them off easier, like little loops. There are also specific devices such as a “compression sock donner” that can be used to put on and take off the socks with ease.

Some of the gloves come with an additional velcro closure which makes them easier to get on and off as well.

5. Are they affordable or right for you?

Compression garments tend not to be astronomically expensive, but the price can add up as you collect more gloves, sleeves, and socks for different uses.

Any compression garment isn’t useful if it’s just sitting in a closet because you don’t like the way it looks or feels.

They aren’t for everyone

You might have heard that there’s “no one-size-fits-all” when it comes to chronic illness. This is true for compression garments, too.

Some people swear by theirs and faithfully wear them daily, while others are more ambivalent or outright dislike them.

While sharing videos of myself demonstrating arthritis life hacks on social media, some of the most frequently asked questions I’ve gotten are: “Why are you wearing those gloves? Are they for arthritis or something else? Do they actually help?”

I have found the response to the gloves to be generally positive, with people saying they’re happy to find another possible product that could help them.

That said, I’ve also encountered people who say they tried wearing the gloves but their friends, family members, or coworkers either made fun of them or talked down to them due to the gloves.

Some people don’t like the gloves aesthetically or feel that the benefits of wearing them are not outweighed by the downsides of people asking them questions like “What happened to your hand?” Others might like the gloves but aren’t able to wear them during work or school due to uniform requirements.

For better or worse, any time you have a visible manifestation of a mostly “invisible disability” like RA or PsA, people may comment on it. But I’ve found it helpful to develop a thick skin and try my best not to worry about what others think.

When are compression garments not recommended?

As with any effort to reduce pain, stiffness, or other bothersome symptoms, it’s important to listen to your body. If any type of compression garment makes your pain worse, they’re not a helpful tool for you.

In my experience, people with nerve pain sometimes find that compression causes further irritation and pain.

If you also have fibromyalgia or are otherwise very sensitive to touch, you might find that compression garments are not comfortable. Similarly, wearing compression clothing when your skin is irritated or itchy could aggravate any sensitivities.

The takeaway

Compression garments, such as gloves and socks, could help with inflammatory arthritis symptoms.

Currently, I’m at a stage where I find compression garments a very useful tool when I’m having a hand pain flare-up or traveling by plane. I don’t use them every day because my disease is in a fairly managed state at the moment. Instead, I use them when I need a little bit of extra relief.

I’d love to hear your thoughts — what do you think about compression garments for inflammatory arthritis?