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The content of this article is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, examination, diagnosis, or treatment. You should always contact your doctor or other qualified healthcare professional before starting, changing, or stopping any kind of health treatment. For example, a break in the base of the thumb often requires surgery. This is because a doctor may have difficulty applying a splint or cast to the thumb. A splint or cast ensures that the thumb is in the right place to heal correctly.
This is called an open reduction with internal fixation. By keeping it immobile for some time, you prevent triggering the injured muscles. It is advised to rest your injured thumb for 1 to 2 days. As with bruised fingers, try not to move your finger too much and keep it elevated if you can. Icing your finger and taking painkillers can help to reduce pain and swelling. Most children are able to recover from thumb fractures without surgery due to the ability of the bone to remodel.
Nonsurgical Treatment
There are two phalanx bones that make up the thumb, along with the metacarpal. Injuring any of the bones in the thumb can cause very serious problems. Distal phalanx fracture thumb injuries and thumb metacarpal fracture injuries can be incredibly painful, rendering you unable to work for a long period of time. Due to this, the right treatment for a broken thumb needs to be performed as soon as possible after the break. Our guide covers everything you need to know about healing time and treatment for a broken thumb.
You may see large open wounds or pieces of bone that have broken your skin and are sticking out of your skin. These are signs of a severe fracture, known as a compound fracture. If you have these symptoms, you should seek immediate medical attention. A doctor will usually recommend physical therapy following a thumb fracture and after a person has their cast removed. Physical therapy usually involves strengthening and stretching exercises to help a person regain movement and strength in the thumb.
Post-Surgical Treatment
Your local pharmacy can also be a good option, as the pharmacist can take a look and advise you further on finger fracture treatment. Unlike other broken bones, there often isn’t a huge amount that can be done about a broken finger. However, there are some things that can help it to heal faster, such as using a splint or strapping your broken finger to another finger to hold it still . As we go about each day doing our normal activities, there’s always a risk of tripping, falling and getting injured. If you experience a thumb sprain, reach out to your healthcare provider.
There are multiple types of surgical procedures that can be done which are covered below. Choosing the best sprained thumb treatment method isn’t always straightforward. It is important to find the right treatment option quickly before the pain and instability leads to more severe tears. We’ve created this article to guide you in treating your sprained thumb to get you back to all the activities you enjoy.
Stretches and Exercise
In children, thumb fractures may involve the physis if they are close to the base of the metacarpal bone. Identifying a broken finger can be quite troublesome, as most minor breaks have very similar symptoms to the common sprained finger symptoms. One way to judge the difference is to ask, can you move your finger? Most sprained fingers can still be moved with ease, while it can be much more difficult to move a broken finger, especially when it is a severe break.
Initial treatment of a suspected thumb fracture is to immobilise with a splint and apply ice or cold water to reduce pain and swelling. Note if the pain and swelling goes down after a couple of hours. If your finger is not deformed or bruised, and the pain and swelling eventually subside, you may have just sprained your finger.
How to treat finger injuries at home
Both a virtually the same, except with a Rolando fracture, the bone breaks into more than two pieces. For more information about eligibility for private medical care, contact our friendly team today. Alongside the broken thumb NHS treatment available, you could also become eligible to receive private treatment for a broken thumb, for free. There are multiple types of treatment for a broken thumb available all over the UK in a private setting with specialists.
To diagnose a sprain, your doctor will first move your thumb in various directions to see how it’s affected by a damaged ligament. Sprained thumbs are also common in sports that require you to use your hands, such as football, volleyball, rugby, or basketball. Read about how minor sports injuries can be treated at home. Read on to learn more about how to know if you’ve sprained your thumb, what can cause a sprain, and how it’s treated. Grade 3 —This is when the ligament is completely torn or pulled off the bone.
If you’re in a lot of pain, take an acetaminophen-based medication, such as Tylenol or Paracetamol, to take the edge off. Don’t take any NSAIDs (non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs), such as ibuprofen, until you’ve seen the doctor and they tell you it’s safe to do so. Keep your finger elevated as you ice it, above your heart. This will allow gravity to help reduce the swelling and bleeding. Breaks at the base of your finger are usually easier to treat than fractures at your joints or knuckles. If part of your finger is pointing in a different direction, the bone is probably broken or dislocated.
If a broken finger is left untreated, this can be prolonged, or even cause serious complications. Most treatment for a broken finger consists of strapping the injured finger to the finger next to it, to hold the bone in a set position. If the finger is not treated in this way, or the other common ways, such as a finger cast, you may lose function in your finger, or cause significant deformity. The ulnar collateral ligament , which is the ligament typically involved in a sprained thumb, needs plenty of time to heal. Resting your thumb will give your body a chance to repair the damage. Be sure to avoid activities that involve using your thumb and protect it with a splint or brace.
Sometimes, a person may need to seek medical attention to determine whether they have a thumb sprain or a thumb break. People who wrestle, play hockey or football, or ski are at risk of a broken thumb, as are people with a calcium deficiency or history of bone disease. The bones in the thumb can break in several different ways, and these affect how a doctor will treat a broken thumb. If you have surgery, you’ll wear a cast or splint for two to six weeks. At that point, any pins that were inserted will be removed.
Avoid sleeping with an ice pack, if the cold is left on your skin for too long it can cause a skin injury. Follow your healthcare provider’s instructions on how to care for your sprained thumb. Try avoiding activities and sports that involve using your hands for at least a month so your ligament has time to heal. Your healthcare provider will ask you questions about how and when you injured your thumb and about your symptoms. They may also have you undergo imaging tests as mentioned above.
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