Exercises For Wrist After Surgery

Broken Wrist Recovery Tips

A wrist fracture can be painful and difficult to heal. But it is not impossible, and you can recover from a broken colles in no time at all if you follow the right steps. Here are some tips on how to recover after a wrist fracture.

Elevate Your Wrist

Elevate your fractured wrist at least a couple of inches above your chest level for the first few days after the injury. This will relieve pain and swelling. Resting your wrist is initially important so that it does not become more stiff and swollen. You should avoid heavy lifting and strenuous activities until cleared by your doctor.

Apply Ice

Apply ice to your wrist every 2-3 hours for the first 24 hours after the break. You can also use cold compresses that have been soaked in water or saline solution. Do this until the swelling subsides. Applying ice to your injury will help reduce swelling and ease the pain.

Compression

You can use compression to reduce swelling while your wrist is being elevated. However, be sure to consult with your doctor, so you dont accidentally cut off the circulation in your wrist.

Use Pain Medication

If youre experiencing pain, your doctor may suggest an over-the-counter pain reliever. Stronger prescription pain medication may be necessary for severe wrist pain.

NSAIDs can help relieve pain but might also hinder bone healing, especially if taken for extended periods. Speak with your doctor before taking any new medications for pain relief.

Exercise Joints Near the Wrist

Exercises To Be Done Immediately After Surgery:

Active Wrist Flexion and Extension Transcript is below

With your forearm supported, slowly bend your wrist forward and back, holding each position for 3-5 sec. Repeat 10 times.

Ball Squeeze Transcript is below

Hold a small foam ball in the hand of your surgical side. Squeeze the ball and hold for 3-5 seconds. Repeat 10-20 times.

Bicep Curl/Active Elbow Motion Transcript is below

Stand up straight in a tall, upright posture. Bend your elbow to slowly move your hand toward the front of your shoulder. Change direction and straighten your elbow fully, until your hand is pointed toward the floor. Hold each position for 3-5 seconds. Repeat 10- 20 times.

Consult With A Specialist Before Engaging In Strenuous Activity

Your surgeon or another specialist should thoroughly assess the condition of your hand and give you the all-clear before you return to sports or exercise after hand surgery. Do not simply return to these activities without first speaking with a healthcare professional. Though your surgeon may have given you an estimated time for your recovery, you shouldnt assign this to yourself as a definitive timeline for returning to these activities.

If you return to strenuous physical activity before youre fully cleared, you could do more damage to your hand, potentially extending your recovery time or causing a more permanent injury. Your healthcare provider should test your reflexes and use imaging tests, such as X-rays, to determine when you can safely return to sports or exercise.

If you have any questions about your hand injury or recovery process, contact our team at The Hand and Wrist Institute. We can help you plan for the safest and fastest recovery possible.

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Range Of Motion Exercises

Range of motion exercises are important after wrist surgery. However, you should avoid simultaneous wrist and finger flexion for three to six weeks, suggests the website Hand Surgical Associates, Boston.

Keeping your fingers straight and your thumb extended, slowly and deliberately flex your wrist forward until you reach your end range of motion. Hold this position for one or two seconds, then extend your wrist as far back as possible. Perform 15 repetitions of this exercise two to three times per day.

After you have performed your wrist flexion and extension range of motion exercises, perform side to side movements of your hand, also called medial and lateral deviation of your wrist. Keeping your fingers straight and your thumb extended, slowly and deliberately move your wrist from side to side. Hold your hand at your end range of motion for one to two seconds before switching to the other side. Perform 15 repetitions of this exercise two to three times per day.

Wrist Pronation With Dumbbell

Wrist pronation refers to the position of your hand facing down as if you were pouring a pitcher of water.

If you’re combining this exercise with wrist supination , alternate turning your palm up with turning your palm down.

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How Long After Surgery Do I Need To Keep Doing My Exercises

To maintain the health of the joint and keep your ROM you should continue with the exercises for a year.

Following surgery, bones, muscles and soft tissues undergo a period of healing. Failure to use the joint may cause it to heal improperly. This can limit range of motion, flexibility, function of the joint and overall surgical outcome. This makes it essential to complete physical therapy after surgery.

After surgery you can expect to have pain, swelling and inflammation. You will also be expected to begin physical therapy the day of or day after your surgery. Each day and week to follow you will find some things will be easier and some things are still difficult. You will be expected to perform your home exercise program on a daily basis, sometimes twice daily. Progressing from home health therapy to outpatient therapy then to independence your exercises will change. Once you are discharged from outpatient physical therapy you will be given a final HEP to continue on your own. These exercises will be determined by your physical therapist to focus on the areas of weakness and to maintain proper function as you heal.

So the answer to the question . . .How long after surgery should I continue with my exercises?It is about 1 year after your surgery.

Wrist Extension With Dumbbell

Verywell / Mira Norian

For the wrist extension, you’ll need a dumbbell, a chair, and a table or desk.

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Wrist Exercises After Surgery

Rehabilitation is crucial following surgery, including surgeries for wrist fractures, carpal tunnel syndrome and other wrist-related problems. The speed at which you regain your wrist range of motion is an important factor in your recovery, and largely is dependent on which exercises you perform and how often you perform them. Because of the invasive nature of surgery, it’s likely that you’ll develop scar tissue around the incision site, which can cause adhesions between your wrist structures and reduce the ability of your nerves to glide. Specialists from the Hand Center at the New England Baptist Hospital in Boston suggest that, if you have had carpal tunnel release surgery, you should begin performing gentle exercise of the hand the day after surgery.

Perform These 5 Gentle And Safe Finger Exercises While You Are In A Wrist Cast To Avoid Stiffness Pain And Swelling In The Fingers

There can be several reasons why you are searching for finger exercises in a wrist cast. You may have a cast, or splint, on your wrist because of a fractured wrist, a sprain or strained ligament, a wound or laceration, nerve injury, and so on.

Many times, I find it comes with an embarrassing story. Its ok, your story is welcome here!

Wrist injuries happen more often than you know. With your cast on, you are probably getting lots of attention and lots of unwanted advice. Everyone has a story to tell you about how their neighbor broke his wrist tripping over the curb or their cousin Jane broke her wrist slipping on the ice.

And you are probably getting all kinds of advice on the type of oil or lotion you should rub on your hand to speed up the healing.

Regardless of how it happened, you are probably here because at the moment, its not your wrist bothering you.

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Pain And Numbness After Carpal Tunnel Surgery

Your surgeon usually bandages your hand following carpal tunnel surgery. You may notice it feels numb, a sensation that comes and goes. It could also feel tingly before becoming numb.

Its normal to feel some pain or discomfort following carpal tunnel surgery. Your hand may feel pain for several weeks afterward. If it persists for longer than that, you should talk to your doctor. Your surgeon may prescribe medicine to help you with the pain, and you can also ice the area to reduce swelling.

Simple Broken Wrist Rehab Exercises For A Quick Recovery

Dr. Kristina DeMatas

A broken wrist is a common injury that can severely impact your everyday life. It can mean a break in the forearm bones , or of the carpal bones that make up the wrist joint. Falling is one of the most common causes of a wrist fracture.

Broken Wrist Rehab Exercises

Wrist fractures can be extremely painful. Your fracture may require surgery to help your wrist heal, and severe breaks can take up to 6 months to fully recover. In addition to surgery, broken wrists can be treated with splints, casts, and painkillers.

As an Orthopedic and Sports Medicine Doctor, I see patients recovering from fractured wrists. So, Ive compiled a list of my top broken wrist exercises and recovery suggestions.

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Intermediate Colles Fracture Rehabilitation Exercises

Wrist flexion and extension with dumbbell

• As above, but hold a dumbbell in your hand. Repeat 2 sets of 10 reps. 2 times per day.

Wrist pronation and supination with hammer

• Hold a hammer in your hand with your elbow bent to 90 degrees.
• Rotate the hammer in each direction. Start with 10 times each way. Do 2 sets. Repeat 2 times a day. The closer your hand is to the head of the hammer, the easier it will be.

Advances Colles Fracture Rehabilitation ExercisesPush-ups

• Start from your hands and knees if you have to, and try to progress to full push ups . Progress to 2 sets of 10 reps. Complete 1-2x/day.

Chin-ups

• Stand on a step in front of a pull up bar. Grab onto the bars so your palms are facing you.
• Pull yourself up, squeezing your shoulder blades together, until your chin is above the bar. Slowly lower yourself back down and repeat.
• Try to progress to 2 sets of 10 reps. Complete 1-2x/day

Physiotherapy After Volar Plating Of Wrist Fractures Is Effective Using A Home Exercise Program

• Gert D. KrischakCorrespondenceReprint requests to Gert D. Krischak, MD, Center of Surgery, Clinic for Traumatology, Hand, Plastic, and Reconstructive Surgery, University of Ulm, Steinhoevelstrasse 9, 89075 Ulm, Germany
• Anna KrastevaAffiliations
• Daniel GulkinAffiliations
• Florian GebhardAffiliations
• Michael KramerAffiliations

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How Do I Know If I Have A Colles Fracture Wrist Sprain Vs Wrist Strain Vs Wrist Fracture

A broken wrist refers to a bone injury, but how do we know if its a bone injury or something different? Its simpler than you may think. Your three general injuries are fractures/breaks, strains, and sprains. A fracture/break means you injured a bone. Whether it be cracked, chipped, or broken into 2 or more pieces. This is where the Colles fracture falls. A strain means you injured a muscle. Muscles are what let us move and control our body movements. Because we can control them, they are considered active structures.

• TIP: The ends of muscles turn into the tendons that attach to your bones. So if you injure a tendon, it is typically called tendonitis.

A sprain means you injured a ligament. We are unable to directly control our ligaments, so they are considered passive structures.

• Your ligaments are what actually hold your bones together.

Wrist And Forearm Strengthening

Brett Sears, PT

The muscles around your wrist and forearm may be weak from the injury and your wrist being immobilized. Your physical therapist may prescribe wrist strengthening exercises with a dumbbell to help improve your strength.

Remember to start slow with a light weight. Once your wrist strengthens, you can progress to a heavier weight. Check in with your PT to ensure that you are using the proper resistance for your specific condition.

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Exercises To Do After Surgery

It is important to do the exercises recommended by your therapist after your rotator cuff repair surgery.

You can begin with hand, wrist, and elbow exercises immediately after surgery. Your therapist, as directed by your surgeon, will instruct you on which exercises to do and when to begin as you progress after surgery.

How Do I Know If I Broke My Wrist Should I Get An X

Maybe you stumbled upon this article because you just hurt your wrist and youre trying to decide if you should seek medical attention or not. Well, youve come to the right place! This is a really good question, so good that researchers decided to figure out who should and who shouldnt get x-rays to save the health care system some money. This is considering the fact most people who present to the emergency room with wrist pain are referred to imaging, however, only 39% of people who experience wrist trauma will have sustained a fracture . The Amsterdam Wrist Rules concluded the following information

The likelihood of having ANY type of wrist fracture is greater if

• NO PAIN with ulnar deviation

The bullet points in bold and italic held the most weight in regards to the likelihood of a wrist fracture. Thus if you have a very swollen wrist, a visible deformity of your wrist, and it is tender to touch on the inside of your wrist at the distal radius bone, it is likely in your best interest to seek medical attention and get x-rays to confirm if you have a wrist fracture or not.

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Tips For Returning To Exercise Or Sports After Hand Surgery

A hand injury can feel devastating if youre dedicated to an exercise regimen or involved in sports. Though taking time off from these beloved activities is difficult, its important to give your hand time to recover following any surgical procedure. The recovery time from surgery varies by patient, but the following tips will help you get back to your exercise or sports as quickly as possible.

Contents

• 5 Consult With a Specialist Before Engaging in Strenuous Activity

Exercises For Hand And Fingers After A Broken Wrist

A broken wrist is a surprisingly common injury. According to a study published in October-December 2014 by Journal of Family Medicine and Primary Care, up to 20 percent of bone fractures treated in the emergency department affect the radius â a large bone in the wrist.

You might notice stiff fingers after a broken wrist, particularly if you spend time in a cast, as explained in a case study published in October 2016 by Manual Therapy, Posturology & Rehabilitation Journal.Exercises are performed to improve movement and strength in your hand and fingers after a wrist fracture.

Video of the Day

Stop exercising and consult your doctor or physical therapist if you experience pain with hand or finger exercises after a broken wrist. Follow your physical therapist’s instructions for specific exercises and repetitions for the best outcome.

Read more:Normal Range of Motion of the Wrist

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Follow Your Physical Therapy Exercises At Home

Ask plenty of questions at your physical therapy appointments to ensure you fully understand the directions for your at-home therapy. If youre not confident about the right way to perform a particular movement, continue practicing with your therapist until youre comfortable doing it on your own.

Physical therapy isnt meant to take place solely in the office. You should continue your exercises at home to get the full benefit of the therapy and support your recovery. In most cases, this involves a strict daily regimen of prescribed movements. The better you are at keeping up with these exercises, the quicker you will be able to return to exercise and sports.

Dont push yourself beyond the guidelines set by your physical therapist. Get the therapists clearance before you do more than the recommended number of exercises. Pushing yourself to go above and beyond may set you back in the recovery process, as it could cause you to re-injure your hand.

What To Expect From Carpal Tunnel Surgery

With minimally invasive endoscopic surgery, your doctor can relieve the symptoms of carpal tunnel syndrome without the need for large incisions. In a single-portal surgery, you receive one tiny incision in the wrist. In a two-portal surgery, you receive an incision in the palm and wrist. The endoscope or a camera attached to a thin, flexible tube enters through the wrist incision to help your doctor see the carpal ligament.

After your doctor locates the carpal ligament, he will insert tiny tools into your incisions to cut and release the ligament. For a single-portal surgery, the endoscope contains a camera and a cutting tool, whereas, in a two-portal surgery, your doctor will insert a cutting tool through the palm. Cutting this ligament helps relieve median nerve pressure and eliminate your symptoms. Once your doctor cuts the ligament and removes his tools, he will close your incisions with stitches.

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