Hand Surgery

What is Hand Surgery?

Hand surgery is a medical procedure that treats disorders of the hand, wrist and forearm. The hand is an important part of the body, without it, most functions would become impossible for a person. A hand surgeon is trained to correct any disorder that prevents normal function. This can be achieved through both surgical and non-surgical means.

Diagnosis

The diagnosis of the hand will involve taking patients medical history. In addition, the diagnosing physician may require the patient to perform some light exercises. This is important in assessing the range of motion. It allows the doctor to determine which tendons and muscles are injured.

In the case of injury, the doctor may order a wound culture. This is necessary especially if the injury was due to a bite. It helps eliminate other illnesses such as rabbis. The doctor also gently palpates the hand. This is in order to determine the extent of the injury; a broken bone is usually tender to touch.

He or she may also perform a needle prick test. The doctor will prick the hand at various points with a sterile needle to determine sensation. This test is conducted in order to determine if there have been any nerve damage.

Other tests that are performed are an x-ray scan. In addition, a Doppler flowmeter test can be conducted. This test determines if there is any blood flow in the hand. It helps to determine if the tissues have too badly affected and have started dying off.

Treatment

In some cases, surgery is not performed. He doctor may give the patient corticosteroid injections to ease swellings. In the case of physical injury, the patient will also be given antibacterial medication to ward off infections. The hand is usually tied in bandages to restrict movement.

This is done in order to allow the bone fractures time to heal. In addition, the tendons and ligaments need time to heal without being exposed to vigorous movement. In most cases, the hand is placed in a suspended state, to prevent use.

How much time is required?

In most instances, an operation may require that one stays overnight for observation. However, this may not always be the case, especially if there is no surgery needed. The patient will rarely spend more than a day in the hospital. This is unless there are other injuries that are no hand related.

What should be cared?

The recovery process from a hand disorder can take a few days, week or months. Most hand injuries rarely go beyond six months. The recovery process will involve a scheduled visit to the doctor to determine if it is healing normally. In addition, it will involve recommended exercise after the hand is healed. The exercise must be conducted under supervision to prevent being reinjured. There are specialists who are trained to help make the recovery process quicker and more fruitful. A good diet will also be advisable during the recovery process. It will assist the body to rebuild damaged tissue to its former state. The specialist will normally give a guideline of the foods to eat.