We use our hands for nearly everything. When stiff hands come about, it prevents us from doing daily activities that we take for granted. Stiff hands can prevent you from completing everyday tasks such as opening a jar, cooking, picking up your child, and more. For some, the stiffness may be all the time. For others, it may come and go.
A sprained thumb is an injury to a ligament, which is a soft tissue that connects bones to each other at the joints to keep it stable, as opposed to a thumb fracture (break) which is an injury to the bone. The ulnar collateral ligament is the most injured ligament in the thumb. This particular ligament connects the thumb to the hand on the side closest to your index finger.
Normally, surgery is performed using general anesthesia in which the patient is asleep. General anesthesia is not necessary for many surgeries and can be risky in some cases. Wide awake surgery is a technique that avoids this problem and can be performed in an operating room or in the office. It is commonly used for problems of the hand and wrist.
The hands and fingers are one of the main areas affected in the majority of patients with rheumatoid arthritis, resulting in painful, inflamed joints, deformity of the fingers, and loss of hand function. Exercises for your hands and fingers can help prevent arthritis-related deformity and improve use of your hands by maintaining good integrity and functionality of your hand and finger joints.
A randomized clinical trial led by Sydney researchers called the COMBO study, has found rather than a single solution, a combined approach of already available options including education, a splint to support the thumb, hand exercises, and a pain relief gel could be a promising lead in helping volunteers with thumb base osteoarthritis regain hand function.
