Hand Issues

Dupuytren's contracture is a fairly common disorder of the fingers. It most often affects the ring or little finger, sometimes both, and often in both hands. Although the exact cause is unknown, it occurs most often in middle-aged, white men and is genetic in nature, meaning it runs in families. This condition is seven times more common in men than women. It is more common in men of Scandinavian, Irish, or Eastern European ancestry. Interestingly, the spread of the disease seems to follow the sa...

When you stop to think about how much you use your hands, it's easy to see why the joints of the fingers are so important. Arthritis of the finger joints has many causes, and arthritic finger joints can make it hard to do daily activities due to pain and deformity. Unbearable pain or progressive deformity from arthritis may signal the need for surgical treatment.

When you stop to think about how much you use your thumbs, it's easy to see why the joint where the thumb attaches to the hand can suffer from wear and tear. This joint is designed to give the thumb its rather large range of motion, but the tradeoff is that the joint suffers a lot of stress over the years. This can lead to painful osteoarthritis of this joint that may require surgical treatment as the arthritis progresses.

The tendons that allow each finger to straighten, the extensor tendons, at first appear to be relatively simple. But as the extensor tendon runs into the finger, it becomes a complex and elegantly balanced mechanism that allows very fine control of the motion of each joint of the finger. When this mechanism is damaged in certain areas, this balance can be destroyed. The result is a finger that doesn't work properly. Over time, the imbalance can lead to contractures (tightening of the tendons) an...

Carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) is a common problem affecting the hand and wrist. Symptoms begin when the median nerve gets squeezed inside the carpal tunnel of the wrist, a medical condition known as nerve entrapment. Any condition that decreases the size of the carpal tunnel or enlarges the tissues inside the tunnel can produce the symptoms of CTS.

Guyon's canal syndrome is an entrapment of the ulnar nerve as it passes through a tunnel in the wrist called Guyon's canal. This problem is similar to carpal tunnel syndrome but involves a completely different nerve. Sometimes both conditions can cause a problem in the same hand.

When you think about how much we use our hands, it's not hard to understand why injuries to the fingers are common. Most of these injuries heal without significant problems. One such injury is an injury to the distal interphalangeal, or DIP, joint of the finger. This joint is commonly injured during sporting activities such as baseball. If the tip of the finger is struck with the ball, the tendon that attaches to the small bone underneath can be injured. Untreated, this can cause the end of the ...

We use our hands constantly, placing them in harm's way continuously.Injuries to the finger joints are common and usually heal without significant problems. Some injuries are more serious and may develop problems if not treated carefully. One such injury is a sprain of the proximal interphalangeal joint, or PIP joint, of the finger. This joint is one of the most unforgiving joints in the body to injury. What appears at first to be a simple sprain of the PIP joint may result in a painful and stif...

Normal finger position and movement occur from the balanced actions of many important structures. Ligaments support the finger joints. Muscles hold and move the fingers. Tendons help control the fine motion of each finger joint. Disease or injury can disturb the balance in these structures, altering normal finger alignment and function. The result may be a crooked finger, such as a swan neck deformity of the finger.

Trigger finger and trigger thumb are conditions affecting the movement of the tendons as they bend the fingers or thumb toward the palm of the hand. This movement is called flexion.

Injury to the ulnar collateral ligament of the thumb is fairly common. This strong band of tissue is attached to the middle joint of the thumb, the joint next to the web space of the thumb. This condition is sometimes called gamekeeper's thumb because Scottish gamekeepers commonly injured their thumbs as a result of their job.