Quote:

---

I agree with "bstenman" it is the repetitive motions. Computer work sets it off. Clinching my hand into a fist, like when I unscrew a jar or have to grab something tightly sends my hand into pain. Any gripping motion that requires pressure seems to aggravate it.

Not to change subjects but have any of you worn the "wristies"? They are made of fleece and have a long and short version. My hand always feels cold to me and more so when I am on the computer. I wear a fingerless knitted glove a great deal but am curious about the wristy. I saw them in a catalog and on the internet but since they do not have any fingers am curious to see if they stay in place.

Lori

---

I was so afraid of my Dupuytrens - my dad had the surgery and it made hamburger out of his hands, a long slow recovery, painful rehab, not very good results. I quit rock climbing because I thought it was accelerating the nodes and I wanted to keep playing my cello.

Well - I just got a needle aponeurotomy from Dr. Eaton. No pain, no cuts, no recovery time, playing my cello the next day, full range of motion. Getting my teeth cleaned is more of a hassle than the needle procedure. If I had known I would have kept climbing. I am thinking of going back to climbing so that I can drop the weight I gained. (The cello is great, but sedentary.) If it accelerates the formation of cords - no big deal. I will get it fixed again.

Does everyone know what Dupuytrens is? The fascia in our hands are like carpet backing material that keeps the skin on our palms and fingers from sliding around. The skin on the back of your hands slides - on the front it doesn't. Dupuytrens causes the strands of fascia to thicken and shorten. The needle aponeurotomy inserts a hypodermic needle which has a very sharp tip, and slashes the cords into little chunks. A 28 gauge needle makes very tiny holes. First there is an injection of novocain into the skin surface. The fascia level has no nerves. So if anything hurts in the procedure, the needle is going too deep. The patient is fully awake, and can tell the surgeon if he feels anything.

The traditional procedure is almost four times as likely to do nerve damage. And it costs eight times as much for the traditional surgery as the needle procedure. No anesthesia, no hospital, just a half hour office procedure - much cheaper. I don't think it is money, though, that keeps the needle procedure from being universal. My guess is that doctors dislike changing as much everybody else does.

Those little chunks of fascia I was talking about? I am two weeks post op and they seem to be shrinking. Not that they bother me any, flat below the skin. The cords used to look kind of nasty, pulled taut as they were. Now you really have to look hard to see anything.

I hope this helps other people with their decisions.

Rex