Skiers Thumb
During the skiing season our specialist hand physiotherapy team expect to see an increase in people who have had an injury to their thumb. These injuries can be caused by falling: if the pole loop is around the wrist, it is not possible to drop it when falling and the top of the pole can push the thumb outwards, causing an injury to the ulnar collateral ligament (UCL) of the joint at the base of the thumb (the MCP joint).
A sprain of the UCL is treated by a few weeks of immobilisation in a custom made, removeable thumb splint. A complete tear of the ligament is a different story, as this can lead to a Stenner Lesion. This is where the two torn ends of the ligament become separated and are unable to join together without an operation.
But fret not… London has more than its fare share of Hand Surgeons who can operate to reconstruct this ligament before ‘handing’ over to our specialist physios who will rehab your hand back to normal.
If you have had this kind of injury to your thumb, it’s a good idea to have it checked as soon as possible by a specialist, leaving it untreated can lead to instability and pain in the joint. Speedy treatment is advisable, so email our team now.
