Hand Pain Flashcards
_______ known as ‘effort thrombosis’, causes swelling in the arm with pain high in the axilla
Subclavian or axillary vein thrombosis,
The commonest cause of the thoracic outlet
syndrome is sagging musculature related to ageing, obesity, and heavy breasts and arms, aptly described by Swift and Nichols as ‘the _______
droopy shoulder syndrome’
Arm claudication is also rare. It can occur with
arterial obstruction due to occlusion of the _________
proximal left subclavian artery or the innominate artery.
Sleep DO associated with hand pain
- thoracic outlet syndrome—______
- CTS—______
- cervical spondylosis—wakes the patient with pain and stiffness that persists well into the day
patients cannot fall asleep
patients wake in the middle of the night
Arm pain in children
The main concerns with children are the _______
effects of trauma, especially around the elbow
This typically occurs in children under 8 years of age, usually at 2–5 years, when an adult applies sudden traction to the child’s extended and pronated arm
Pulled elbow
Signs of pulled elbow
• The elbow is flexed slightly (any flexion will be strenuously resisted).
• The forearm is pronated or held in mid-position.
• The arm is tender around the elbow (without
bruising or deformity).
Types of tennis elbow
‘backhand’ tennis elbow, or_______, and ‘forehand’ tennis elbow, or _________ which is also known as golfer’s or pitcher’s elbo
lateral epicondylitis
medial epicondylitis,
In ‘forehand’ tennis elbow, or golfer’s elbow, the lesion is the _________
common flexor tendon at the medial epicondyle
The pain is felt on the inner side of the
elbow and does not radiate far. The main signs are localised tenderness to palpation and pain on resisted
flexion of the wrist.
Medial tennis elbow (medial
epicondylitis
Difference in the treatment of medial and lateral epicondylitis
The treatment is similar to that for lateral
epicondylitis except that in a dumbbell exercise program that palm must face upwards.
What to avoid in lateral and medial epicondylitis
During a game they should avoid elbow bending and ‘wristy’ shots
Acute olecranon bursitis with redness and warmth can occur in
1
2
3
rheumatoid arthritis, gout, pseudogout,
haemorrhage and infection (sepsis). 13
Chronic recurrent traumatic olecranon bursitis with a synovial effusion may require surgery but most cases can resolve with ___________
partial aspiration of the fluid and then injection of corticosteroid through the same needle.
What syndrome?
Pain is often experienced in the belly of a muscle, such as the flexors and extensors, following unaccustomed use of the wrists and elbows.
There is pain on contraction and stretching of the muscles and
tenderness on palpation.
Overuse syndromes of forearm
muscles
A positive ___________produces a tingling sensation (usually without pain) in the
distribution of the median nerve
Tinel sign
What test?
- The patient approximates the dorsum of both hands, one to the other, with wrists maximally flexed and fingers pointing downwards.
- This position is held for 60 seconds
Phalen test
The test that has the highest specificity of all basic clinical tests is______________, but it has low sensitivity for CTS.
two point discrimination
Sx management of CTS
Surgical release (flexor retinaculotomy) is necessary for patients with sensory or motor deficits and those with recalcitrant CTS
In the fingers the common work-induced condition is stenosing flexor tenosynovitis, also known as
trigger thumb and finger
Associations of trigger finger
It is associated with type 1 diabetes,
rheumatoid arthritis, gout, hypothyroidism and amyloidosis
Tx gof trigger finger
Although surgery is simple and effective, treatment by injection is often very successful
Where to inject in pts with trigger finger?
The injection is made under the tendon sheath and not into the
tendon or its nodular swelling.
This contracture, which causes discomfort and dysfunction rather than pain, is fibrous hyperplasia of palmar fascia leading to nodular formation and contracture over the fourth and fifth fingers in particular
Dupuytren contracture