Unfortunately, many of us ignore them when they are injured. Like everything else, we assume that the pain will go away or that the injury will heal itself. This article will discuss a few things I have noticed from patients regarding hand and finger injuries.
After talking with many patients about hand injuries, I always like to ask them why they did not seek medical help sooner or even why they did not seek medical help at all! Many patients say, “I know my finger is broken, there is nothing to be done just like with a broken toe.” …… False! Or, “I didn’t know that rehabilitation for a hand or finger was possible.”
Unlike a broken toe, there are many possible avenues of rehabilitation for a broken finger, depending on the location or type of fracture. A surgical approach may sometimes be necessary. There is a very specific type of rehabilitation for finger sprains or tight muscles in the hand. It is essential that we take care of our hands and fingers for the rest of our lives, as they are essential to our daily lives.
Here are some common injuries that happen to our hands and fingers: mallet finger, trigger finger, sprained finger, skier’s thumb, Bennett’s fracture (boxer’s fracture), hand fracture, to name a few. As you can see, many injuries can occur to our hands and fingers. Over the next few paragraphs, I will discuss the medical care for some of these injuries.
These sprains occur in the joint of a finger and even the thumb (usually called a skier’s thumb). A finger sprain is a stretching of the ligaments that surround a finger joint beyond the limits of normal movement. The usual mechanism is that you “lock” your finger or a ball hits your finger directly, pushing it in an uncomfortable direction that usually does not bend in. Immediate care would be to ice the joint and have a doctor examine the injury. Bone fractures or ligament tears should be ruled out. The doctor is able to evaluate and make a proper diagnosis with special tests or even special imaging. If a splint is necessary, we often use the finger next to the affected finger to avoid further bending or twisting as well as to protect the injury. Appropriate rehabilitation and strengthening exercises will be necessary to regain full mobility of the finger while protecting the joint from re-injury.
Another common finger injury is mallet finger. When this injury occurs, it is often mistaken for a finger fracture because of its appearance. It usually happens from a direct force on the fingertip or even the nail, forcing the fingertip down. This force in turn stresses the extensor tendon and eventually ruptures the bone, leaving the fingertip hanging down. This injury requires a specialized splint as soon as possible. If this happens, you will need to be evaluated as soon as possible by a physician or health care professional to get a proper diagnosis. Again, once the splint is removed, rehabilitation and strengthening exercises will be needed to keep the finger safe.
The final injury is the skier’s thumb. It usually occurs in people who have their thumb stuck in one position while the rest of the hand moves in the opposite direction. This injury results in a sprain of the anterior cruciate ligament. This can be a devastating injury, depending on the severity of the sprain of the affected ligament. Often, patients would not be able to use their thumb normally or even grasp objects with their thumb (for example, holding a frying pan, turning a key, etc.). To heal from this injury, a spica splint on the thumb would be required to allow the thumb ligament to heal properly. In extreme cases, surgery may even be necessary.
Fingers and hands play very important roles in our daily lives. Just as these injuries are important to adults, they are equally important to children, as they have many years ahead of them and their future career choices may depend on the health of their hands.
So, if you injure your fingers or hand, you must remember that not all injuries heal properly over time. Lack of attention to this type of injury can cause many medical problems later on after the initial incident. Proper recognition of an injury leads to a proper diagnosis, which leads to a quick return to play!
