hi, my sons 21 and has just been diagnosed with dupuytrens. he has his first appointment at derby uk hand clinic on march 16th. he has two nodules with a dent in between and some contraction in is little finger on his right hand. this has appeared over the last six months, obviously untill we,ve been clinic we dont know whats goin to happen. but any advice? what should we ask? im concerned about his long term career at the moment, hes a manual worker, hes all ready stopped goin to the gym because he cant push weights anymore because of the nodules. thanks shanste.

21 is early, but I had signs in my 30s, I'm 58 today and haven't been unduly hampered by this disease. I've had 2 surgeries, but there are better options now, and probably even better ones coming. So my main piece of advice is - don't be rushed into surgery, especially at a young age, because the accumulation of scar tissue tends to close off other, better treatments later on. Start researching NA (needle aponeurotomy ) which I've also had and recommend. Xiaflex injections are just getting started and may be another good alternative in the near future.

Edited 03/04/10 03:31

I was first diagnosed about the same age,early twenties with just a few nodules.My Dupuytren's lay dormant for 15 years or so but has recently got a lot worse,now 40 years old,going to have my first consultation in a couple of weeks at the hospital but I have had to wait 4 months to get this far after seeing my local GP,the NHS is a slow moving beast!!