Fingers - Ouch!!
Discussion
Just seeing if anyone knows about fingers/bones/joints.
4 weeks ago I hurt my finger, not 100% sure what I did could have been dislocated or broken or just badly sprained... anyway it swelled up massively and I couldn't move it...
I have on and off taped it to the finger next to it to stop movement/give it some support, but haven't taped it all the time as it makes work really difficult.
However, since then I've slowly been able to get movement back into it and it hurts less.
To a point where now I can bend it but not grip anything without shooting pain, the bruising has gone but there is still a "lump" and swelling around the 1st joint.
So to the point of the topic... is this all perfectly normal recovery for someone who's "hurt" their finger or should I seek some "professional advice" and if I do will they actually do anything other than probably tell me what I did (Xray) and tape it to the finger next to it (which I'm doing sometimes anyway)?
TIA
4 weeks ago I hurt my finger, not 100% sure what I did could have been dislocated or broken or just badly sprained... anyway it swelled up massively and I couldn't move it...
I have on and off taped it to the finger next to it to stop movement/give it some support, but haven't taped it all the time as it makes work really difficult.
However, since then I've slowly been able to get movement back into it and it hurts less.
To a point where now I can bend it but not grip anything without shooting pain, the bruising has gone but there is still a "lump" and swelling around the 1st joint.
So to the point of the topic... is this all perfectly normal recovery for someone who's "hurt" their finger or should I seek some "professional advice" and if I do will they actually do anything other than probably tell me what I did (Xray) and tape it to the finger next to it (which I'm doing sometimes anyway)?
TIA
PATTERNPART said:
There is a slight chance that you have Gout. Ask for a blood test for Uric Acid.
I had very similar symptoms and it can strike anywhere.
Think that's unlikely, as there was an "incident" where I hurt my finger...... (fell out of a boat, backwards, tried to grab mainsheet to stay attached, boat moving too fast and hand/finger/fingers was/were wrapped by mainsheet for a few seconds as I was dragged through water, until hand/finger/fingers separated from main sheet, safety boat picked me up, threw me in bottom of RIB and sped after boat I should have been in which was heading for a dam wall with 2 students on their 1st day sailing, whoops :blush:..... so the "I've hurt my finger" could have been when caught/released by the mainsheet or when tossed into bottom of RIB.. put it this way it was fine when I launched and hurt like hell when I returned to shore after this "incident" )I had very similar symptoms and it can strike anywhere.
how long ago did you do this? as it might be dislocated? if it is dislocated, its pretty easy to figure out if it is, as there will be a gap in the joint.
can you put any pressure on the joint and feel if it feels like the one on the finger next to it?
or you might have done something to a tendon like snap one
or you might have broken the socket that the rest of the finger goes into
bit difficult to tell exactly, get a pic up if you can, and the PH bods in medical might have some more insight, but if it doesnt really look much different to the finger next to it, might not be any point in putting the pic up.
If this was me, i would have tryed to bend it with my other hand, and if that was too much pain, feel to see if it is broken, then gone to a hospital pretty much as soon as i could, as if you have dislocated or broken anything in it, there might be some pretty big problems down the line, some sooner than others.
might even lose the finger if it is dislocated and you have lost ample blood supply to the finger, but that is quite a severe case, but as i cannot see it, i cannot rule it out.
can you put any pressure on the joint and feel if it feels like the one on the finger next to it?
or you might have done something to a tendon like snap one
or you might have broken the socket that the rest of the finger goes into
bit difficult to tell exactly, get a pic up if you can, and the PH bods in medical might have some more insight, but if it doesnt really look much different to the finger next to it, might not be any point in putting the pic up.
If this was me, i would have tryed to bend it with my other hand, and if that was too much pain, feel to see if it is broken, then gone to a hospital pretty much as soon as i could, as if you have dislocated or broken anything in it, there might be some pretty big problems down the line, some sooner than others.
might even lose the finger if it is dislocated and you have lost ample blood supply to the finger, but that is quite a severe case, but as i cannot see it, i cannot rule it out.
Edited by Slink on Friday 21st June 03:08
Slink said:
how long ago did you do this?
4 weeks agoSlink said:
its pretty easy to figure out if it is, as there will be a gap in the joint.
can you put any pressure on the joint and feel if it feels like the one on the finger next to it?
apart from feeling a bit lumpy it feels similarcan you put any pressure on the joint and feel if it feels like the one on the finger next to it?
Slink said:
or you might have done something to a tendon like snap one
I have movement with it, I can clench a fist but no strength and it hurts when I doSlink said:
or you might have broken the socket that the rest of the finger goes into
The pain is at the joint between the metacarpal and proximal phalanx.Slink said:
bit difficult to tell exactly, get a pic up if you can, and the PH bods in medical might have some more insight, but if it doesnt really look much different to the finger next to it, might not be any point in putting the pic up.
here's a dodgy photo, it's my 3rd finger and 1st joint after knuckle, you can see on the LHS of the joint there's some redness and the joint is generally swollen.
Slink said:
If this was me, i would have tryed to bend it with my other hand, and if that was too much pain, feel to see if it is broken, then gone to a hospital pretty much as soon as i could, as if you have dislocated or broken anything in it, there might be some pretty big problems down the line, some sooner than others.
I've always been able to move it, all be it initially with help from my other hand, so thought it was just minor and would sort itself out.Slink said:
might even lose the finger if it is dislocated and you have lost ample blood supply to the finger, but that is quite a severe case, but as i cannot see it, i cannot rule it out.
Blood supply to finger tip is good, (ie apply pressure to tip it goes white and then pink as soon as I release.Thing is I know injuries can take a while to heal, and longer as you get older, and don't want to waste GP/NHS time if all they say is "you've done xyz, take 2 paracetamol and rest it"
you could have damaged one of the pulley tendons,
from your description it sounds like same as my index finger which I damaged the a2 pulley and still
have a lump in the joint. Did this over a year ago rock climbing.
doctor couldn't do anything but my mrs being a sports therapist gave me some rehab to increase finger strength.
from your description it sounds like same as my index finger which I damaged the a2 pulley and still
have a lump in the joint. Did this over a year ago rock climbing.
doctor couldn't do anything but my mrs being a sports therapist gave me some rehab to increase finger strength.
Well been to A&E (Coventry and quite impressed.. in Triage, Dr, XRay, Dr and out in an hour and a bit)..
Diagnosis.. nothing wrong with it now apart from some pain and swelling.. most probably dislocated out and back.. nothing to do other than anti inflamatories and try to take it easy.... oh yes and errrrmmm stop falling out of boats (oh how I laughed)
Diagnosis.. nothing wrong with it now apart from some pain and swelling.. most probably dislocated out and back.. nothing to do other than anti inflamatories and try to take it easy.... oh yes and errrrmmm stop falling out of boats (oh how I laughed)
that I did not know, and I am revising to be a doc, (not at uni yet, just revising as much as i can before I go (might be a couple years mind, as ill health stopping me) as it will a good idea to know as much as i can before I start imo)
how come a black finger would mean near elbow amputee ?
guessing as the veins that go to the finger have basically closed down and died so a lot of blood supply to the arm would be gone.
how come a black finger would mean near elbow amputee ?
guessing as the veins that go to the finger have basically closed down and died so a lot of blood supply to the arm would be gone.
Dunno, tbh. Just one of those things I've picked up from hanging around doctors, and it stuck. Finger/toe = below elbow/knee; hand/foot = above the joint. Though that's gangrene, rather than frostbite blackness which seems to be more of a case of let it drop off of its own accord and move on.
Greg66 said:
hidetheelephants said:
Do things not go through a 'turn black' stage a while before the 'falling off' stage?
They do, but if you get to the stage of having a black finger, the chances are you'll need an amputation just below the elbow. 
Greg66 said:
Dunno, tbh. Just one of those things I've picked up from hanging around doctors, and it stuck. Finger/toe = below elbow/knee; hand/foot = above the joint. Though that's gangrene, rather than frostbite blackness which seems to be more of a case of let it drop off of its own accord and move on.
don't listen to this , Slink 
bit of an oversimplification of matters. Often the level of amputation is some way above the dead bit, but it's much more scientific than that.
Level of healing, level of injury, underlying disease, age, MESS or Mangled Extremity Severity Score (!) http://www.wheelessonline.com/ortho/mangled_extrem...
anyhow, to the OP hope you're getting better, if not you need to see a hand specialist, no messing around.
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