From typing an email, cooking and mobile browsing – our hands help us to get through the day with multiple tasks! The modern day sedentary lifestyle often brings about hand-related illness and discomforts. The causes can range from excess typing on the laptop, to carrying heavyweight as well as unforeseen accidents. Treating severe hand injuries need the critical intervention of an expert hand surgeon or orthopaedic. There are many hand discomforts and disorders that people ignore. These might require both the guidance of an expert hand orthopaedic and also surgery.
Here are few hand ailments that require surgery done by an expert hand surgeon.
- Carpal tunnel syndrome
It occurs when there’s acute pressure on the hand’s median nerve. The nerve extends from the wrist beneath the carpal tunnel ligament. Patients’ suffering from this disease experience sharp pains like needles and pins. Sometimes even the fingers can become numb. When medication, exercise, acupressure and other healing methods fail, surgery is the only respite. Operation releases the nerve pressure. The carpel tunnel ligament is split by a hand surgeon under the application of local anaesthesia. Patients might have to stay in the hospital overnight, post the surgery.
- Dupuytren’s contracture fasciectomy
Dupuytren’s contracture is a medical condition of the tissues of your palm and finger. Though it’s painless, it results in skin nodules. In extreme situations, it occurs in forming bands causing the fingers to curl downwards. Surgery is required to eliminate the tissue and also release the fingers. Complete recovery is rare. But when the operation is done by the best hand orthopaedic, patient’s experience greater healing.
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- Knuckle replacement
Due to rheumatoid arthritis in the knuckles, your fingers might be deformed or damaged. It can also make your fingers move away from your thumb, which is very painful. And it also restricts your day to day hand function. When you find it tough to use your thumb and hand, surgery is essential. An operation substitutes the knuckles with an artificial joint that functions flexibly. After surgery, patients experience less pain and have also reported immense improvement in hand function as well.
- Trigger finger release
Patients’ suffering from trigger finger can bend the affected finger. But at times it gets stuck in a coiled position for long. It happens as the tendon thickens at the finger bends. Hence, it gets fixated on the tunnel, where the muscle enters your finger.
Patients’ are usually referred to a hand orthopaedic or hand therapist for treatment. Either or both make a splint so that the finger triggering stops. Sometimes, even a local injection provides the much-required respite. When all this fails, hand surgery is the solution. In operation, a surgeon opens the tunnel and sets the tendon free. Complete recovery takes two weeks.
From eating, typing to driving – our hands perform several tasks all through the day! Taking care of minor to critical hand discomforts is our duty. Also, when you are witnessing a painful hand condition, don’t let it pile on. It’s always better to check with a leading hand surgeon. These four hand ailments certainly need medical intervention.