Your fingers are a marvelously designed mechanism for grasping, holding and controlling other objects. You depend on the fingers of your hands to help you function throughout the day. The intricate movements of the fingers are the result of highly fluid nerve reactions. Unfortunately, the nerves in your fingers can become damaged. When these nerves are damaged, this can seriously impair the finger’s ability to function in such an intricate and fluid way. Since finger nerve damage can give rise to a number of issues, the following are some examples of symptoms of finger nerve damage of which to be aware.
Total Loss of Motion
For a finger to be able to move, it must be able to receive nerve signals from the brain. If a finger is unable to move, this could indicate that there is potentially considerable damage to the nerve responsible for the motion of the finger in question. If a nerve is severed, such as when a finger gets chopped off and separated from the hand, this makes it impossible for such a finger to receive the nerve signal to invoke intricate movement. If the nerve pathway cannot be restored, then there is little chance that this finger will ever be able to move again due to the extensive nerve damage incurred when the finger and its nerve were severed.
Numbness and Burning Sensations
The sign that nerve damage is present in your fingers may manifest as some type of numbness or burning sensation. This is generally an indication that you are dealing with some type of neuropathy. This sensation can be a permanent sensation, or it may come and go depending on how your hand is positioned. Certain positions of the hand may impair the signal and nerve functionality more than others. If numbness and burning sensations in your fingers are an ongoing problem, you may need to see a doctor to determine if neuropathy is truly what these symptoms are implying.
Weakness
When you squeeze your fingers around an object, you need to be able to apply pressure over a consistent amount of time. If the pressure applied by one or more fingers varies over time, then the result will be a shaky grip. If this is not being done intentionally, then this could indicate nerve damage that suggests that the finger is getting too weak to maintain the ability to apply a stable force to the object you are attempting to hold.
As you can see, there are many different symptoms of nerve damage in the fingers. The good news is Dr. Arora and his team at Arora Hand Surgery can help. Contact us today to schedule a consultation at our office in West Bloomfield, Howell, Warren, or Macomb Township!
