Are there tendons in your hands

Your hand therapist or surgeon will be able to give you a more detailed estimate of your likely recovery time. It's vital that you follow all the instructions and advice given to you regarding the use of your hands during your recovery period. If you attempt to use the repaired tendons before they've fully healed, it could cause the repair to rupture break or split.

Some common complications of tendon repair include infection, the tendon rupturing and the repaired tendon sticking to nearby tissue. An infection develops after about 1 in every 20 tendon repair operations.

Infection risk is highest if the hand is damaged and the wound is contaminated by dirt. Crushing injuries are also more likely to cause an infection. Symptoms that may indicate your hand has developed an infection include:.

Contact your GP if you think you have developed an infection. Most infections can be successfully treated with antibiotics.

After about 1 in every 20 tendon repair operations, the repair fails and the affected tendon ruptures. When this happens, it usually occurs soon after the operation, when the tendon is weakest. Tendon ruptures often happen in people who do not follow the advice about resting the affected tendon. Accidental trips, falls or suddenly catching your splint on an object can also rupture the tendon.

However, you may not notice the tendon has ruptured until you discover that you cannot move your finger or fingers in the same way as before. If you think your tendon has ruptured, contact your surgical team or hand therapist.

Further surgery is usually required to repair the tendon. Tendon adhesion is a medical term that means the tendons have become stuck to surrounding tissue and have lost some of their range of movement. This can cause loss of movement, which in most cases is minor.

More serious cases of tendon adhesion require surgery to free the stuck tendon. Contact your surgical team or hand therapist if you notice a reduction in your ability to move your hand while you recover from surgery.

Home Tests and treatments Surgical procedures Hand tendon repair. Hand tendon repair See all parts of this guide Hide guide parts 1. Introduction 2. How hand tendons are repaired 3. Recovery 4. Introduction If any of the tendons in your hand are damaged, surgery may be needed to repair them and help restore movement in the affected fingers or thumb.

What are tendons? There are 2 groups of tendons in the hand: extensor tendons — which run from the forearm, across the back of your hand to your fingers and thumb, allowing you to straighten your fingers and thumb flexor tendons — which run from your forearm, through your wrist and across the palm of your hand, allowing you to bend your fingers Surgery can often be carried out to repair damage to both these groups of tendons.

When hand tendon repair is needed Hand tendon repair is carried out when one or more tendons in your hand rupture or are cut, leading to loss of normal hand movements. Recovering from surgery Both types of tendon surgery require a lengthy period of recovery rehabilitation because the repaired tendons will be weak until the ends heal together. Most of the muscles that move the hand and wrist are in the forearm, although there are a few small muscles in the hand.

Each muscle connects to a white cord-like structure called a tendon. There are many tendons running through the wrist and out into each finger. They may be irritated by overuse tendinitis or cut due to sharp injuries to the hand or wrist. There is a vast network of arteries and veins in the hand and wrist that supply the tissues with blood.

Occasionally an artery is injured due to a sharp injury to the hand or wrist. Vascular disease gradual narrowing of the arteries and smoking may also damage the arteries in the hand leading to poor blood flow to the fingertips. Light activities can often be resumed after 6 to 8 weeks, and heavy activities and sport after 10 to 12 weeks. Read more about recovering from hand tendon repair. After an extensor tendon repair you should have a working finger or thumb, but you may not regain full movement.

The outcome is often better when the injury is a clean cut to the tendon, rather than one that involves crushing or damage to the bones and joints. A flexor tendon injury is generally more serious because they're often put under more strain than extensor tendons. After a flexor tendon repair, it's quite common for some fingers to not regain full movement. But the tendon repair will still give a better result than not having surgery.

Complications can sometimes develop after surgery, such as infection or the repaired tendon snapping or sticking to nearby tissue. Since the needs of the juvenile arthritis JA community are unique, we are currently working with experts to develop a customized experience for JA families.

Get Started. As a partner, you will help the Arthritis Foundation provide life-changing resources, science, advocacy and community connections for people with arthritis, the nations leading cause of disability. Join us today and help lead the way as a Champion of Yes. Our Trailblazers are committed partners ready to lead the way, take action and fight for everyday victories. Our Visionary partners help us plan for a future that includes a cure for arthritis.

Our Pioneers are always ready to explore and find new weapons in the fight against arthritis. Our Pacesetters ensure that we can chart the course for a cure for those who live with arthritis. Our Signature partners make their mark by helping us identify new and meaningful resources for people with arthritis.

Our Supporting partners are active champions who provide encouragement and assistance to the arthritis community. Hand and Wrist Anatomy The hand and wrist are made up of many different bones, muscles and ligaments that enable a wide range of movements.

The following are the main structures of the hands: The wrist is formed where the two bones of the forearm — the radius the larger bone on the thumb side of the arm and the ulna the smaller bone on the pinky side — meet the carpus. Rather than a single joint, the wrist is actually made up of multiple joints where the bones of the arm and hand meet to allow movement The carpus is formed from eight small bones collectively referred to as the carpal bones.

The carpal bones are bound in two groups of four bones: the pisiform , triquetrum , lunate and scaphoid on the upper end of the wrist the hamate , capitate , trapezoid and trapezium on the lower side of the hand. Other bones of the hand are: the metacarpals — the five bones that comprise the middle part of the hand the phalanges singular phalanx — the 14 narrow bones that make up the fingers of each hand.

Each finger has three phalanges the distal, middle, and proximal ; the thumb has two. Each of the fingers has three joints: metacarpophalangeal joint MCP — the joint at the base of the finger proximal interphalangeal joint PIP — the joint in the middle of the finger distal interphalangeal joint DIP — the joint closest to the fingertip. Each thumb has two joints.