Sports Injuries in the Hand

Injuries to the hand during sports can include a multitude of structures. These include fractures, tendon injuries, nerve injuries and/or ligament injuries about the wrist and/or fingers. Examples of unique fractures that are seen in sporting injuries include hook of the hamate fractures which are seen in golfers, tennis players and/or baseball players. These require surgical excision of the damaged bone because its poor blood supply precludes healing of the fracture. Other fractures in the hands also may be more aggressively treated in the athletic in order to get them back to sports at an earlier rate and begin therapy at an earlier time. Instrumentation includes specialized screws and plates to allow this happen. Ligament injuries are quite common in the hand at the level of the wrist after serious fall and especially in the thumb. A common thumb injury is that incurred by a skier after a fall on the thumb with a tear of the collateral ligament at the metacarpal phalangeal joint which requires surgical intervention. This is often called skier’s thumb. Tendon injuries can also be found in athletics. One common injury is called Rugger-Jersey injury. This occurs when a flexor tendon is avulsed from its normal insertion and retracts into the palm because of grasping on to a jersey in an attempt to make a tackle during a football game. Rocks climber can have peculiar injuries to their hands. Specifically, rupture of the flexor tendon pulleys which occur with undue stress on pulley system causing bowstringing of the flexor tendons. Thus, there are a myriad of injuries that can be seen in different sporting activities and these need to be assessed and evaluated for prompt and accurate treatment.