Hello Jaekry

I'm sure there'll soon be positive practical advice from forum administrators and others more experienced. I am a beginner like you, and understand how it feels to run into something like this, and not know where to turn for clear answers. May I suggest that it only feels as though others can't see the dark clouds, until you've had a little time to learn about your condition and accommodate yourself to it, and find out about your options. I admit that getting Dupuytrens made me very depressed, but I have had friends and loved ones with far worse things, at all stages of life. Only personal experience allows us to see and appreciate the isolation of those around us who have to endure goodness knows what all the time.

On my own thread you might see how advice on this forum helped me come to a decision about undergoing RT, which was all the more confusing because I live in a country where Dupuytrens is hardly known. As with you my disease seems to be at an early stage, and I am persuaded that RT will do no harm and may well do some good. An old school friend, a doctor, also has DD and doesn't believe in the efficacy of radiotherapy (not everyone does) but nor does he believe it can hurt. In the end unfortunately we have to decide for ourselves, but there is plenty of evidence to help us.

As it happens I'll be in the NL this summer and plan to see a consultant at St. Antonius Ziekenhuis in Nieuwegein. The details are on this website under 'treatment' - www.antoniusziekenhuis.nl. Obviously I can't report further until I've been there, but can say that they've responded very promptly and helpfully so far. There's also a Prof. Werker at the University of Groningen who is widely respected.

Hi Jaekry

Welcome to the forum, so sorry to hear your story. DD is often triggered by hand, wrist injury or even surgery. It may therefore settle down once the inflammation and healing associated with your wrist injury heals and settles too. Most people never get a contracture, despite the appearance of nodules and cords, but it cannot be predicted for sure. Even so it can be a nuisance condition, not life threatening, although maybe for some lifestyle changing, and even in quite severe cases it can be managed well using one of the many options for treatment. People often carry on playing sports, performing music, doing craft hobbies, and manage their DD along with other conditions that occur as we age. Sadly it’s these other conditions that may take precedence if more life inhibiting or threatening. DD is at least benign and manageable under most circumstances.

Some Drs will treat early soft nodules with a steroid injection, and this may help if there is inflammation due to the wrist injury, but in general the efficacy of this a treatment is unproven. Or as your GP says you could just wait. It might settle down as the wrist heals and go dormant. Additionally Dr Werker, already mentioned, is on the IDS advisory board, https://www.dupuytren-online.info/radiotherapy_clinics.html and would be a good choice to discuss whether it’s worth treating now or waiting. The only other potential treatment choice for early stage is indeed RT, and usually you can take some time over this decision if or as progression is slow.

Edit to add, there are a few things people report that make their hands feel better as they cope with the condition. None of these are a cure so do not spend lots of money on them. Gentle massage with magnesium or viatamin E oils. Hot soaks with Epsom salts. Ice or pain relief patches for pain. If you browse the forum you will find others. There is a trustee member of the BDS who has developed a massage protocol for early DD that has some encouraging reports. The chair of the BDS is from the Netherlands with family there and so exploring them and making contact may be helpful. http://dupuytrens-society.org.uk/

Edited 03/04/18 10:33

Thank you for the response this far, it needs to settle in and in am researching a lot. And thinking up a strategy
I will address all the responses later with the attention it deserve.

And off to buy cycling gloves...

Edited 03/04/18 18:54

There are traits in common with my own case - hypermobile individual who gets hand (or part of) immobilized for a long period - it was 3 months for me, 8 for you. My right hand looked a bit like your right one, but with two pronounced pea-shaped nodules, while yours has similar puckering and seems to have just one larger and flatter mass under the ring finger.

I just posted pics of what my hand looks like after a few months of self-massaging and gently extending (and eventually hyper-extending again) fingers to what they were originally able to do:

https://www.dupuytren-online.info/Forum_...amp;thread=2329

Since I am no doctor, and while I was diagnosed DD by a hand surgeon and an ultrasound scan confirmed that - it seems exceptionally uncommon to get such a regression, please be warned that my case may not necessarily be a slam-dunk DD one.

Have a look anyway at my hypermobile hands and comment whether you were able to do something similar before getting immobilized.

Ive contacted my current surgeon, or I tried to, but her assistent replied that she doesn't know enough about long term risks and therefore can't support it.
That's okay, but because I was handled by the assistent I have no idea if her knowledge is current, outdated or even non existent regarding this treatment.

So I went back to my GP, afraid he would still decline, but after hearing me and the progression he was more than willing to help and send me to a specialist... If I can find one myself and one with acces to the facilities.

Apparently there are 3 clinics in the Netherlands. The first one, Reinier de Graaf in Delft, has a waiting list of 3 months (for the first consultation).
They already sent me the application and info about payment. (1575 for 5 sessions including for one hand including a mould, excluding consultation which in my case is for the health insurance. The rest I have to pay myself). But off course they will advocate RT because well they are a RT facility and its the core business of making money. ;)

I want to try to contact Werner in Groningen en Catharina's in Eindhoven as well.

But I still would like to reach out to Seegenschmiedt as Stefan_K said it might help.

Update on progression;
- I think a cord is developing, a sharpish line going to my palm? I thought the supposed to be growing towards fingers?
- I think a second pad/nodule is developing in center of palm below middle finger
- worsened stabs of pain
- my palm seems to be cupping, which I noticed before, but didn't think much of it. Its like my palm is sinking deeper.
- first nodule seems to be less pointy, but bigger. Bit squashed so the say ;)
- more cramps (wtf?)
- my extending / hyperflexion of fingers backwards (without aid) just to be about 45/60degrees, its now about 10 (and that feels tight)

Tried very gentle stretching, but all it seems to do is add burning, so I stop extending my fingers when its 0 degrees.
It doesn't seem to be a good thing for me.