Do You Have Trigger Finger? How an Occupational Certified Hand Therapist Can Help

Trigger finger is a simple name for a debilitating condition. It causes pain, stiffness, and a sensation of locking or catching when you bend and straighten your finger. It’s somewhat akin to having a constant charley-horse in your hand.

Symptoms of trigger finger often start without a single injury. They may follow a period of heavy or extensive hand use, particularly pinching and grasping activities. With trigger finger, the flexor muscle contracts, and the finger is locked temporarily in a bent position on and off or long term.

Trigger Finger Symptoms1
• A tender lump at the base of the finger on the palm side of the hand
• A catching, popping, or locking sensation with finger movement
• Pain when you bend or straighten the finger
• Stiffness and locking tend to be worse after periods of inactivity, such as when you wake up in the morning.
• In a severe case, the involved finger may become locked in a bent position1

Treatment1
• Resting your hand and avoiding activities that make it worse may be enough to resolve the problem.
• Wearing a custom or prefabricated & fitted splint at night to keep the affected finger or thumb in a straight position while you
• Gentle stretching exercises can help decrease stiffness and improve range of motion in the involved digit.
• The use of modalities like ultrasound, cold laser and interferential current electrical stimulation can greatly decrease inflammation, increase circulation to the area and decrease pain and triggering.
• Over-the-counter medications, such as acetaminophen and nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), can help relieve pain and inflammation.
• Corticosteroid, or cortisone, is an anti-inflammatory agent that can be injected into the tendon sheath at the base of the trigger finger. A steroid injection may resolve the triggering over a period of one day to several weeks. If symptoms do not improve with time, a second injection may be given. If two injections do not help the problem, surgery may be considered.1

Seeing an occupational hand therapist can alleviate and cure the trigger finger naturally through specific exercise, modalities and soft tissue mobilization. Hand therapy is normally prescribed after surgical trigger finger repair to speed up the recovery process and to allow the finger to heal and function optimally.

Hand therapy is used to help with numerous indications and conditions for the hand, wrist, elbow and shoulder. There is no better way to alleviate pain, increase range-of-motion and live a higher quality of life than through hand therapy.

Innovative Therapies Group offers certified hand therapy, massage, physical, occupational and speech therapy. They embrace alternative and eastern medicine philosophies and will help you explore new inventive ways to combat your pain or disorders.

Innovative Therapies Group, Inc.
352-433-0091 | innovativetherapiesgroup.com

Source:
https://orthoinfo.aaos.org/en/diseases–conditions/trigger-finger