From Our Blog

Upper Body – Hand

Falling on an Outstretched Hand

Often times, our first instinct when falling is to put out our hands to soften the impact. However, this is one of the most common sources of hand and wrist injuries, frequently causing injuries and even fractures. After a fall on an outstretched hand, you may have lingering pain and/or swelling at the wrist. To […]

“Jersey Finger”—You Got a Problem with That?

What is “jersey finger”? Well, it has nothing to do with the state of New Jersey. Jersey finger refers to an injury that occurs most frequently in a football or rugby game. One athlete grasps another’s shirt, or jersey, to make a tackle, and the finger gets caught in the shirt. The flexor tendon, which […]

Navigating Recovery After a “Ship” Fracture

A scaphoid fracture refers to a fracture of the wrist—specifically the bone shaped like a boat, which is why it is often called a “ship” fracture. A fracture of this bone can result from falling on an outstretched arm, sustaining a direct blow to the wrist or receiving a severe twist of the wrist. A […]

Physical Therapy for Skier’s Thumb

Thumb injuries are quite common, especially among skiers. During a fall, a skier’s thumb can easily catch against the ski pole, resulting in a tear of the ligament that stabilizes the thumb. This ligament, known as the ulnar collateral ligament normally keeps the thumb from pointing too far away from the hand. When it is […]

Getting a Grip on Extensor Tendon Repair

Extensor tendons allow you to extend your wrist and open your hand. They run along the forearm to the wrist and then along the back of the hand. Because these tendons have little protection, they are quite vulnerable to injury. You could injure your extensor tendons in several ways: lacerations (for example, if your hand […]

Skiing and Thumb Injury

Skiing falls can often cause injury to the inner ligament of your thumb, caused by the force of the pole against this area of the hand during a fall. This area, a band of fibrous tissue connecting the bones at the bottom of the thumb, is known as the ulnar collateral ligament. This injury is […]

Continuing Pain After Carpal Tunnel Surgery

Even after undergoing surgery for carpal tunnel syndrome, some patients are still bothered by occasional tingling and numbness in the affected hand . Carpal tunnel syndrome involves the median nerve, which runs down the forearm, through the wrist and into the hand where it provides feeling and power to the palm, thumb and middle fingers. […]

Fight Back Against Rheumatoid Arthritis

More common among women than men, rheumatoid arthritis is a chronic autoimmune disease in which your body attacks the joints, starting as painful swelling in the hands and feet. Though it primarily affects people older than 40, it can strike at any age. And while there is no cure, treatment for rheumatoid arthritis has come […]

Put Your Finger on Flexor Tendon Recovery

Flexor tendon surgery involves the tendons in charge of bending the fingers or thumbs into the palm of your hand. These tendons let you grip a pencil and hold a fork and knife. That is why your hand must be allowed to heal properly after flexor tendon surgery. The awkward-looking splint you have to wear […]

Baseball Finger: The Injury You Don’t Catch

You hear the crack of the bat and see the ball coming your way, but when you reach for the catch, the ball jams your outstretched middle finger. You’ve just caught baseball finger, also known as mallet finger. Mallet finger can result from any situation in which the tip of the finger is jammed by […]

Physical Therapy for a Pinched Nerve

Imagine holding a straw in your hand and squeezing the middle as you sip a beverage. You will notice that not much liquid is able to pass through the straw and reach your mouth. Essentially, this is what happens when you have a “pinched” nerve. A pinched nerve ensues when a nerve is compressed, and […]

Don’t Strike Out When You Break Your Wrist

You walk out of your house, trip on the sidewalk and attempt to break your fall with an outstretched arm. Immediately afterward, you notice pain, swelling and an inability to move your wrist. You have likely just sustained a broken wrist (or Colles’ fracture), one of the most common types of broken bones. Obviously, this […]

The Light at the End of the Carpal Tunnel

Carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) affects as many as one in 20 Americans. It occurs when the median nerve—the nerve that controls movement and sensation in the palm of the hand, thumb and fingers—is compressed as it travels through the carpal tunnel, a narrow passageway in the wrist formed by bones on the bottom and sides, […]

Unjamming a Jammed Finger

Many people have dislocated a finger at some point in their lives. While these minor injuries often occur while playing sports such as basketball, they can also be the result of falling onto an outstretched hand or catching your finger between two objects. Jammed fingers can be extremely painful and require immediate treatment to aid […]

Bumping Up Treatment for Ganglion Cysts

Do you have a bump on the wrist your physician called a ganglion cyst? These soft-tissue fluid-filled lumps are usually harmless, generally painless and often go away on their own. Ganglions can occur in any joint and may result from arthritis or from injury due to repetitive stress activities. If the cyst is painful, interferes […]

Treating Carpal Tunnel Syndrome Without Surgery

Carpal tunnel syndrome, a painful condition that causes numbness or “pins and needles” in the fingers and wrist, typically results when the median nerve, running from the forearm through the narrow, rigid passageway of ligament and bones (the carpal tunnel) into the palm of the hand, becomes squeezed at the wrist. The prevalence of computer […]

A Tale of Two Tendons: de Quervain Syndrome

de Quervain syndrome, also called de Quervain tenosynovitis (DQT), is a problem in people who make a repetitive motion with their hand, wrist and thumb. The motion can be involved with pursuits ranging from trimming bushes to factory work to typing to tennis. Fritz de Quervain, a Swiss surgeon, is credited with identifying the syndrome […]

Relieve Burning Pain in the Wrist

Wrist pain can be a challenging problem to treat. This is especially true with regard to complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS) of the wrist. It is a condition that remains poorly understood but has the hallmark symptom of pain. Wrist CRPS causes a persistent burning pain in the wrist—often following a minor injury or even […]

Getting Rid of Ganglion Cysts

Ganglion cysts are a common and generally harmless condition, although they can be uncomfortable and may affect movement. They start out as bumps on the back of the hand and the sides of the wrist. The cyst itself is filled with fluid, which can thicken over time, making the cyst feel firm or spongy. The […]

That Ugly Lump on Your Wrist

The lump on your wrist may look worrisome, but if your physician has diagnosed it as a ganglion cyst, there is no cause for alarm. Although they may grow larger, particularly after vigorous activity, these fluid-filled growths are not cancerous and will not spread. Frequently, ganglion cysts cause continuous aching pain that is worsened by […]

Jersey Finger: It’s Not What You Think

Jersey finger is a hand injury common among athletes who participate in tackle sports such as football and rugby. It occurs when a player grabs an opponent, entangling his or her finger in the jersey. As a result, the finger tip, or distal interphalangeal joint, is hyperextended, and the flexor digitorum profundus (FDP) tendon attaching […]

“Unbending” Dupuytren’s Contracture

Most often occurring in men of Northern European descent older than 40 years of age, Dupuytren’s contracture results in the inability to bend the fingers, usually the ring and little fingers. Genetic factors are thought to play a role in Dupuytren’s disease; however, currently no link has been established. Risk factors may include manual labor […]

Arm Yourself After a Distal Radius Fracture

A distal radius fracture—a break near the wrist in the largest forearm bone—is one of the most common injuries of the forearm. The fracture often occurs when a person falls onto an outstretched hand. Other causes include direct impact or axial forces. Treatment depends on such factors as the exact nature of the fracture, your […]

Shake Hands with Dupuytren’s Contracture

What did Ronald Reagan, Margaret Thatcher and Samuel Beckett have in common? The answer is Dupuytren’s contracture, a progressive, slow-moving condition that affects the connective fibrous tissue in the hand. Thatcher was the odd person in this group, since the condition normally strikes men of Northern European descent over the age of 50 and is […]

Flexing Your Flexor Tendons After Surgery

Because recovery from surgery to repair flexor tendons (the tendons that control the movement of your fingers) can be challenging and slow, many people become frustrated after about two months. Why does it take so long to regain the ability to fully bend or straighten your finger? For one thing, effective rehabilitation requires patience and […]

Recovering from a Colles’ Fracture

Most people are familiar with the concept of a wrist fracture, which refers to a break in one or more bones of the wrist. You may, however, have received a specific diagnosis of a Colles’ fracture, which occurs near the end of the radius—the arm bone that forms part of the wrist joint. Colles’ fractures […]