Blog Category

Category: Wrists

Blog // Wrists
Categories
General Wrists

How Can I Treat My Fractured Wrist?

Read Blog
fractured wrist

A fractured wrist is not as simple as most people believe. A wrist fracture can be displaced or non-displaced. When you have a fractured wrist, you usually feel immediate and severe pain. You may also experience some numbness in your hand, your hands and fingers may change color and you might see the wrist bone protrude out of the skin.

Wrist fractures are relatively common. It is estimated that a quarter of a million people experience a fractured wrist every single year in the United States. One of the reasons why this injury is so common is because of the wide range of ways humans use their wrists. Injuries can come from car accidents, playing sports or work.

Depending on the location and severity of the injury, the treatment options vary significantly from case to case. Some simpler wrist fractures can be treated by just setting the wrist and casting it. Then you wait for the bone to heal in its proper position. However, other fractures may require you to get an operation, and you may need to endure a post-operative recovery. It all depends on the unique situation.

With most wrist fractures, you do not need surgery. All you need is to have a cast put on your wrist, and you need to have a little bit of downtime at home. The cast is used to keep your wrist immobilized while it heals. Other cases may require an operation.

You should expect to have some wrist stiffness, especially if your fractured wrist required you to have surgery. The stiffness will gradually improve. Our doctor may prescribe hand therapy as a way of helping you keep your strength.

As you can see, there is no one-size-fits-all treatment for a fractured wrist. The treatment will depend on the extent of the injury, as well as your age, your occupation, your hand dominance and your overall health, among other things. During a consultation with Dr. Arora at Arora Hand Surgery, your wrist can be evaluated and a customized treatment plan can be created for you. The main goal is to fix the fractured wrist and then regain strength and function.

For your convenience, Arora Hand Surgery has locations in West Bloomfield, Howell, Warren, and Macomb. Contact us today to schedule a consultation regarding your fractured wrist.

Categories
General Wrists

Common Causes of a Sprained Wrist

Read Blog
sprained wrist

If you have ever had pain and swelling in your wrist after an event such as a fall, which may have caused you to bend the wrist farther than it was designed to bend, you may have a sprained wrist. These injuries occur because of damage to a ligament, the connective tissue in the body that connects muscle and bone.

What Causes a Sprained Wrist

When you fall, the natural tendency is to reach out with the hand in order to break the fall. As a result, the impact of the hand hitting the ground and the momentum created by your body travelling toward the ground at a rapid speed causes the wrist to bend further than it is capable of bending naturally. When this happens, something has to give. Since the tendons are there to connect the tissue together, they are what get stretched to the point of injury. The injury could be that of a tear or it could be something less traumatic. At any rate, an injury occurs that is accompanied by pain, swelling and difficulty in using the wrist.

Diagnosis & Treatment of a Sprain

If you have a fall that results in an injury to your wrist, you should seek medical care. You will, first of all, want to make sure there are no broken bones. The only way to rule this out is to get an X-ray. If there are no broken bones, you will still need to be treated for the sprained wrist.

The method that is used to treat a sprained wrist will depend on the extent of the injury. It may be that wearing a splint for a few days will be all that is needed. In extreme cases, surgery may be required. If there is a ligament tear, it will need to be reconnected.

If you have a sprained wrist, you should understand that there are a number of bones, ligaments and cartilage that must connect and interact correctly for the wrist to function as it should. For this reason, letting an injury go without having it evaluated by a qualified hand doctor like Dr. Arora can lead to long-term discomfort and failure to regain full use of the wrist. Therefore, you should always seek treatment in these situations.

In addition to falls, other conditions can result in wrist injuries as well. For example, operating a piece of equipment that is held by the hand can result in an injury if that equipment makes a sudden move and takes your wrist with it. In these cases, the injury incurred could be similar to those incurred with a fall.

There are other wrist conditions that can happen over time, such as carpal tunnel syndrome. These cumulative trauma disorders can reach the point where they cause a lot of discomfort.

If you have a sprained wrist or a similar type of condition, schedule an appointment with our doctor at Arora Hand Surgery. We have offices in West Bloomfield, Howell, Warren, and Macomb. Call us today to request a consultation to learn more about your treatment options.

Categories
General Wrists

Treating a Wrist Sprain with a Splint

Read Blog
splint

Wrist sprains are common injuries that can happen to people of all ages from a variety of causes. They can happen as sports injuries or from simple falls during normal daily activities. Whenever you fall, the natural reaction is to reach the hand out in an attempt to break the fall. This is what causes a tremendous amount of wrist sprains as the impact of the fall and the weight of the body are absorbed by the wrist, overextending it.

An injury to a ligament is known as a sprain. Ligaments are the connectors in the body that connect bone to bone as opposed to tendons, which connect muscle to bone. Sprains can vary in their severity to those that have only minor ligament damage and accompanying pain and swelling to the most severe, which is a complete tear of the ligament. When this happens, there is a loss of function in the affected joint.

A splint is commonly used as part of a treatment program for a sprain. Splints help to immobilize the joint in order to limit further irritation and to promote healing. Sometimes, people will use splints as a way of treating themselves when they suffer a sprain. However, splints used by individuals should only be used as a way to keep the injured joint immobile until professional medical help can be obtained.

Only through a professional evaluation can a sprain-type injury be properly diagnosed. One should seek medical care after an injury of this nature to rule out other injury types, such as fractures. If no fracture is involved, the sprain should be evaluated for severity. While most sprains will heal on their own, some of the most severe ones could require surgery.

When a splint is used as part of treatment, our doctor’s recommendations should be followed regarding when and for how long to wear it. If you wear the splint for too long, you could be putting yourself at risk for additional joint stiffness and muscle weakness. Depending on your particular injury, our doctor may recommend some strengthening and stretching exercises.

If you have suffered a fall or some type of joint injury and you are experiencing symptoms like pain, swelling and tenderness, you should seek an evaluation from our team at Arora Hand Surgery. Our medical professionals can conduct whatever tests are necessary for an accurate diagnosis and develop a treatment plan accordingly. We have offices in West Bloomfield, Howell, Warren, and Macomb. Contact us today to schedule a consultation.

Categories
General Wrists

Wrist and Arm Fractures in Toddlers

Read Blog

You have probably heard it said, and maybe even said it yourself, that when a child is hurt, it hurts the parent twice as much. Of course that is debatable, but indisputably it can be very hard on a parent seeing a toddler fall down and sustain a fracture.

That said, you are never going to prevent a toddler from ever falling down, and at some point it is very possible that a fracture will occur. Toddlers hardly ever incur a sprain – it is almost invariably a fracture. The good news is that even when a fracture does occur in a young child, it will usually heal quickly.

Identifying a Wrist or Arm Fracture in a Toddler

Toddlers are like the rest of us – when forward movement goes wrong, the natural reaction is to extend the hand in order to break the fall. Unfortunately, sometimes breaking the fall means breaking the wrist or the arm. Your first tip-off that a fracture may have occurred is obvious – the child will begin to cry. Do not assume, though, that just because the child can move the wrist or the arm, nothing is broken. You may not even be aware that a fracture has occurred unless the bone is obviously out of position. Generally speaking, if the child is in pain, and the pain does not ease quickly, a fracture is possible.

Types of Wrist and Arm Fractures in Toddlers

One of the most common fractures in toddlers occurs above the wrist, in the radius, which is the large bone in the forearm. In fact, nearly half of the broken bones in toddlers occur close to the end of the radius.

Another type of fracture is a “torus” fracture, where the bone collapses but does not break completely. This type of fracture usually heals well.

A greenstick fracture is another type of partial fracture that usually heals well. With a greenstick fracture, you may not notice symptoms – there could be very little bruising or swelling, but the child will be reluctant to use the arm, and the area may be tender. The joints will all still move.

See a Doctor

You probably know that doctors are required by law to report suspected cases of child abuse. Unfortunately, that knowledge sometimes makes good parents reluctant to seek medical assistance. Keep in mind that if the incident is isolated, and the child does not appear to have any other injuries, the doctor is very likely to accept your explanation that it was an accident. You should never be afraid to take your child to the doctor if you suspect a fracture.

Feel free to contact our hand surgeon’s office in West Bloomfield, Howell, Warren, or Macomb to get in touch with a medical professional.

Most Toddler Fractures Heal Easily

Most of the time, when a toddler has had a fracture of the arm or wrist, he or she will want to begin using the arm right away. Frequently, this is not a problem, as toddlers heal very quickly and effectively. Sometimes, though, the doctor may recommend the use of a sling. Obviously, the arm or wrist should be handled more gently than usual as healing progresses.

Categories
General Wrists

How do I treat a sprained wrist?

Read Blog

Spraining your wrist is one of the most common injuries, and it can happen more easily than you might think. You could be playing sports and have a collision, you could slip and fall walking down the stairs, and receive the injury in countless other ways. A sprained wrist occurs when your outstretch palm hits the floor or another surface and bends backwards momentarily. This causes the ligaments in the wrist to stretch further than they were meant to stretch. Small tears can occur, and in some cases, it is possible to snap the ligament entirely.

Most Common Symptoms

When a person sprains their wrist, there is a substantial amount of pain. In addition, the area tends to swell. The site of the injury will be warm to the touch as it swells. The area will also be extremely tender to the touch – even a light touch can send swells of pain through the body. Bruising tends to occur as well.

At the moment of the sprain, it is common for the injured party to feel the tear as it occurs. This can actually be the most frightening part for many people, as they know that something bad happened … they just do not know the extent of the injuries.

The Diagnosis

While you might suspect that you have a sprained wrist, the only way to know for sure is to speak with a doctor. You do not want to believe that you have a sprained wrist when it is actually broken. The doctor will examine you, and they may require that you have an x-ray as well. This will give them a look “inside” to make sure that there are no fractured bones in the wrist. They may require other imaging tests as well, such as an MRI, to get the entire picture.

Types of Sprains

There are several “grades” of sprains – Grade I, II, and III. The mildest of these is Grade I, which is reserved for those sprains that have only minor ligament damage. The Grade II sprains have more damage, as well as more pain. Some patients might feel as though their wrist joint feels loose. They will also lose proper function of the wrist until it heals. A Grade III sprain is the most serious, as it means that ligament is torn and the patient will not have any use of their wrist.

Treatment Options

When you have a sprain, you will want to follow the acronym RICE – Rest, Ice, Compress, Elevate. Keep the wrist resting and add ice to the area to keep the swelling down. Use a bandage to compress the area, which will also help with the swelling. Keep your wrist elevated so it is above heart level.

You can also take over the counter non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, which can help to keep the swelling down, and which can provide you with pain relief. Those who suffer from a Grade III sprain may need to have surgery to proper repair.

While most sprains aren’t serious and can heal on their own, you should still get a medical opinion. Contact our hand surgeon’s office in West Bloomfield, Howell, Warren, or Macomb to get in touch with a medical professional. You need to have a proper diagnosis if you are expected to heal.

Categories
General Treatments Wrists

How to Use a Compression Bandage on an Injured Wrist

Read Blog

If you have wrist pain due to a sprain, strain or medical condition like carpal tunnel syndrome or arthritis, you may find it helpful to wrap the wrist with an elastic bandage in order to help alleviate the pain. Wrist wrapping is also sometimes done to prevent injuries when participating in certain sports. It is, of course, important to know how to wrap a wrist properly.

Step 1

Make sure you have a bandage of the proper length. If it is too short, you are just going to have to start the process all over again. Begin wrapping at the point farthest away from your heart. This helps to ease swelling in the lower part of the wrist, that can sometimes actually be aggravated by the process of wrapping, and it also encourages the return of blood and lymphatic fluid. So start the first wrap just below the knuckles, covering the palm, and extending around the fingers.

Step 2

Pass the wrap between your index finger and thumb, and then do a few wraps around the wrist, extending upward toward the elbow. This provides the best level of stability, and helps to prevent further injury to the wrist. Each wrap should cover about half of the previous wrap.

Step 3

Reverse the direction. Once you get to the elbow, keep on wrapping until you are back at your hand. If you started the procedure with a bandage that is too short, you can use two bandages. Just place the start of the second one a few inches over the end of the first one, and continue wrapping. When you get to the thumb, make a figure 8 and wrap upwards a bit more.

Step 4

Secure the bandage, using either the clips that were provided with the bandage or a safety pin. You may need some assistance in order to do this.

Step 5

Make sure that the bandage is not too tightly wrapped. If your fingers feel cold, the bandage should be loosened. You should also be able to wiggle your fingers. You want to be sure that the bandage is tight enough to provide support, but not so tight that it interferes with blood flow.

Other Considerations

If you are applying ice to an injured area, make sure that you remove the bandage first. You should find that the discomfort and swelling in the injured area will ease within 72 hours, but if it does not, you should see your doctor. Keep in mind, too, that if you are not sure of the nature of the injury, it may not be wise to self-diagnose and self-treat. Some injuries can actually be aggravated by using an elastic bandage.

Also, make sure that you remove the bandage periodically to allow air circulation to the affected area.

Categories
General Wrists

Preventing Repetitive Stress Injuries in the Wrist

Read Blog

Repetitive stress can lead to any number of wrist injuries, including carpal tunnel syndrome, bursitis and tendonitis. All have essentially the same symptoms – pain in the wrist, arm and hand. In order to prevent repetitive stress injuries to our wrist, follow these six tips:

  1. Stay Strong

It really is true that if you dont use it, youll lose it. So exercise your wrists regularly to make sure that they remain strong.

  1. Stay Healthy

If your overall health is not good, all areas of your body (including your wrists) will be vulnerable to stress. Exercise regularly, eat a good diet, and maintain a healthy weight.

  1. Change Positions

Sitting in one place for lengthy periods of time can cause muscle strain. This is especially true if your job requires you to use a computer for hours on end. Get up and stretch your wrists as well as the rest of your body.

  1. Keep a Proper Distance

When you work with your hands, you want to keep them a reasonable distance from your body – not too close, but not too far away either. This enables your other muscles (the ones in your back, shoulders and arms) to take on some of the load that you would be otherwise demanding of your wrists. It also encourages good blood flow, and reduces the stress on nerves, tendons and ligaments.

  1. Be Mindful of Your Range of Motion

Your wrists are essentially the same as other joints in your body, in that they are capable of a wide range of motion. Just because you can stretch them to their limit though, that doesnt mean that you should. Make sure that you are not flexing your wrist joints to extremes when you are working. Much of the time, this can cause muscle pulls and hyperextension. Your body is very flexible, but demanding too much can lead to a great deal of stress on nerves and tendons.

  1. Avoid Flexing Upward

Your hand is designed essentially to grip, and a gripping motion is naturally downward. When you are flexing upward, you have less leverage, and your hand has to work considerably harder. This places stress on the leverage points, and can cause damage to the nerves and tendons. Ideally, your fingers and palms should always be somewhere between a gripping position and a flat position – this is why most computer desks have slide-out trays to accommodate a keyboard. If you are reaching upward onto a desktop, your hands are not in a natural position, and it is a recipe for carpal tunnel syndrome.

Keep in mind, too, that using the scroll wheel on your mouse requires upward flexing, so you should use it as little as possible.

Conclusion

Repetitive stress can lead to hand and wrist injuries, and increase your risk of developing carpal tunnel syndrome. You should always try to keep your hands as low as possible, and avoid movements that require flexing your hands upward. If your job requires a lot of repetitive movement, try to change position regularly.

Categories
General Wrists

Carpal Tunnel Syndrome Symptoms, Causes, and Treatments

Read Blog

Many people do not even realize that they are beginning to get carpal tunnel, as it has a tendency to start slowly. It will often begin with a numb or tingling sensation that starts in the fingers. In the beginning, this is not permanent. Sometimes you will feel it and sometimes you will not. Most of the time, you will not feel it in your little finger, but you will feel this sensation in your thumb and the other fingers.

You may begin to feel this when you are gripping something, such as a phone or tablet, when you are reading, typing, or even driving. In some cases, it can even cause people to wake up at night. While most people will only feel it in their hands and fingers at first, it is possible to have the feeling spread up the forearm. As carpel tunnel worsens, these sensations become permanent quite often.

Many who have carpal tunnel will also find that they have weakness in their hands, making it more difficult to hold onto things with a good grip. Those who have these signs and symptoms should certainly consider speaking with a doctor about what they can do next and whether surgery will be necessary.

What Causes Carpal Tunnel?

When the median nerve in the wrist is compressed, it causes carpal tunnel syndrome. The nerve extends from the hand, through the carpal tunnel, and up through the forearm. It may be difficult to isolate the cause of the carpal tunnel. It is more prevalent in women than in men. Certain anatomical factors can be a cause as well. Those who have smaller carpal tunnels are at a higher likelihood of injury. Other causes can include diabetes and other conditions that damage the nerves, fluid retention, obesity, and of course, factors in the workplace. In any job where there is repetitive flexing of the wrist, there is a chance of people developing carpal tunnel syndrome.

Endoscopic Carpal Tunnel Surgery

Several different options are available for carpal tunnel treatment, and endoscopic surgery is one of the top choices for many. One of the benefits of getting endoscopic surgery is that the incisions tend to be small and the recovery time minimal for most types of surgery. This includes surgery to help people deal with their carpal tunnel syndrome. The surgeons will make a small incision in the hand, near the wrist, and then guide the endoscope into the hand to see the wrist. The tools utilized tend to be very small, which also go through the small incision.

During the surgery, the surgeon will cut the transverse carpal ligament as a means to help reduce the amount of pressure being placed on the median nerve. The goal is to help eliminate the symptoms that people with carpal tunnel suffer. While there are certainly benefits to the smaller incisions, endoscopic surgery may not be the right solution for everyone. You will need to speak with your hand surgery specialist about the best course of action for your own hands.

Categories
General Wrists

Is My Wrist Broken or Sprained? – Arora Hand Surgery

Read Blog

How can you tell if your wrist is sprained or broken? Essentially, it goes without saying that if you suspect either a sprain or a break, you should see your doctor or visit the emergency room in order to obtain an effective diagnosis. Sprains and breaks are both painful, and both can cause damage to the structure of the wrist. Interestingly, though, patients who have experienced both often report that a sprain is the more painful of the two injuries. It is also interesting to note that breaks are often more easily treated, whereas sprains can sometimes be more devastating, and if not treated promptly an effectively, can lead to complications like arthritis later on.

If you are determined to self-diagnose, and wait for treatment, or if you are providing first aid to an injured person, you need to know how to determine the difference between a sprain and a fracture. You also need to remember that a sprain is not a minor injury. It can involve serious tears to the ligaments that hold the wrist bones together.

How Did the Injury Happen?

This is the first thing that you need to consider when attempting to answer the questions, “Is it a break or a sprain?” If someone uses their hand to break a short fall, it could be a break, but the smart money is on a sprain. On the other hand, if someone falls off a roof and lands on their hand, a break is more likely.

What Can You See?

If a bone is protruding through the skin, the diagnosis is obvious – it is a break. Additionally, if there appears to be a great deal of swelling or bruising, a break is likely. If the swelling and pain doesnt go away in a day or two, suspect a break, but if it goes away relatively quickly, suspect a sprain.

What Can You Hear?

If moving the wrist results in a grinding or crunching sound, accompanied by excruciating pain, it is almost certainly a break.

What Should You Do?

Immediately following the injury, you or the person you are treating should immediately stop moving the wrist. Elevate it and apply cold packs. If stopping movement seems to be problematic, apply a wrist splint.

Exceptions

Although a break will usually hurt for a long time, and a sprain will stop hurting in a few days, there are exceptions. One is a scaphoid bone fracture. The scaphoid is a small wrist bone that, if broken, could feel painful for a day or two and then stop hurting. In this way, it imitates a sprain, and can be easily misdiagnosed. If untreated, it can lead to arthritis. Additionally, if certain wrist ligaments are sprained, that can also lead to arthritis, because the bones that those ligaments were intended to hold together move abnormally. This can also cause arthritis.

The Final Word

Any wrist pain that has not gone away within 3-5 days after an injury should be checked out. You may need surgery.

Bill Payment Made Easy

Pay on the Go!

Get on the List

Subscribe

Patient

Stories

Read All

Dr. Aroras office from my first call to schedule my appointment was friendly. Walking in the first day, I felt like I was in a nice atmosphere. Dr. Arora was EXCELLENT in taking great care of my hand injury. He was gentle and very understanding to the concerns I had about my hand. His expertise was admirable and I would recommend anyone with an injury to their hand to his office to be under his care. Because of him, I have healed faster than expected and will make an 100% recovery! Thank you Dr.

Jackie S.

I first thought I was going to have to have painful injections or surgery, but Dr. Arora suggested physical therapy may do the trick. I was doubtful, but I agreed to do it. Now, my pain is gone, and with the help of an ergonomic keyboard at work to keep my hands in the correct position, I am virtually pain free. The therapy strengthened my wrists and shoulders, and built more flexibility into my wrists.

Jerry T.

My experience with this doctor was positive from the outset. Dr. Arora was kind and spent a great deal of time with me. Staff was friendly. The office was nice and bright.

Ariel G.

Very friendly and helpful Great staff!!! Doctor Arora was very professional and did great work. I was very happy with everything!

L B.