I have found that over the years wearing the splint is much more comfortable wearing a very light pair of cotton gloves...cutting out the unaffected fingers..

Thanks Cherisse. It's really helpful to compare photos. Will start experimenting this week.

It's now 6 months post NA. It was so good to exchange the clawed hand for a slightly bent pinky joint. I was able to use my hand normally again virtually immediately with no perceptible loss of strength.

Though I had a flare-up about 2 months after NA (the same painful "electric" shock sensations that I experienced in earlier flare-ups) the condition didn't worsen. Perhaps the nightly use of self-made silicon splints prevented this. I also used therapy putty and stretched my fingers occasionally for a couple of months.

Since NA, there has been a slight decrease in the curvature, nodules and palm thickening. The cord, originally thick and tight, that pulled the pinky down, disappeared after NA and has not regrown.

Though Dupuytrens is still there it no longer bothers me as much. I try to remember to use protective gloves when necessary.

Again, I'd like to thank everyone who offered encouraging advice. I'd also like to express my gratitude to the people who make this valuable resource available to all.

Dep:

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Has there been any research into the effectiveness of hand therapy after NA? I gather that some doctors don't recommend it, while others employ hand therapists to supply splints and advise on therapy. Can anyone tell me the therapy that Dr Meinel advised them? One forum contributor mentioned sitting on one's hand on a soft cushion for the first 10 days. They neglected to say how long to sit in this way however. I'm due for NA in two weeks and was told to find my own hand therapist. How do you find a good one who won't do more harm than good? When I was first diagnosed I was sent to a therapist who designed a very expensive night splint that was more like an instrument of torture and made comfortable sleep impossible. I don't want another therapist who is so out of touch with patients' needs. Few doctors seem to be up to date on Dupuytrens and I suspect that many therapists are the same. Can anyone help? Also can someone supply a photo of their silicon night splint post NA so I can try to have that replicated.

NA or surgery failed in my case. Xiaflex opened my fingers.
I wear a FIXXGLOVE every night. And use a home ultra sound on fingers and palms for nodes. Also do exercises referred to me by a hand specialist for DD.

Kind Regards,
Cherise

Dep, I had NA at Rochester's Mayo Clinic (Dr. Marco Rizzo) in September. It took 15 minutes and I highly recommend Dr. Rizzo. Afterwards, I was sent me to a technician who fashioned a splint for me to wear at night for 3 months to keep my pinky straight while I slept.

(The splint was made of a material that was heated in hot water to become flexible and then fashioned to fit part of my palm and 2 fingers. The material stiffened when it cooled and was trimmed with scissors to fit, with some velcro riveted to the splint to hold it in place.)

Now, after 3 months I no longer wear the splint at night. I did NO HAND THERAPY and none was recommended. They just gave me a little spring-like device to wear a few times a day to apply a mild straightening pressure on my pinky.

I am seeing a reduction in the thickness of the cord in the palm of my hand, something that I did not expect. The locations, at 1-centimeter spacing, where the needle was inserted to snap the cord, are only faintly visible now as a very small pinkish area.