Hi Trevor. Thanks for the recognition.
Have you been in touch with Chris? Has he said he cannot help you? Your mention of radiotherapy has me wondering if all is not well.
Marjorie

Hi Trevor,
Sounds to me as though you should have a second opinion. Your hand surgeon appears to be one of the many who have not moved on. Why don't you ask your GP to refer you to Chris? Not too far for you to travel and you are allowed to choose your own hospital for treatment now.
It is 9 months since I had NA on the little finger of my left hand. It is still 95% straight and I am hopeful that it will stay that way for some time. I will certainly go to Chris next time I need treatment. The PIP on my right little finger has been treated once, a little more movement was achieved but PIPS are difficult to treat without surgery. The middle and ring finger on my right hand are pulling very slightly. I can easily cope with that if it does not worsen. Here's hoping.
I am off on holiday on Saturday and am having my computer fixed whilst I am away, so, will not be on the forum for a couple of weeks.
Keep smiling,
Marjorie

I can't find Marjories e-mail but I'm fairly sure she's had both and the last was with Chris (hope I'm not speaking out of turn) and she'd go back to him again if need be.

I've no idea what's involved. What's the differerence and would you say it was good or bad?

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I'll be better able to tell you, when I've had the procedure (NHS - so some months yet) The main difficulty in Paris was in remembering to RELAX, and to breathe as directed before the cord was snapped. Thanks for info re Marjorie

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Thanks Richard. Do keep us informed once you've been

Hi there,

In specific response to your request to hear from someone who has had NA in both Paris and the UK, that would apply to me.

Brief history. Male, 35. First diagnosed around 2002 in left hand little finger. Had NA in Paris in May 2003. Pretty good results, but not fully released due to proximity of nerve to cord. Aggressive recurrence, so I resorted to a fasiectomy in Spring 2004 in the UK. Again, didn't manage to get full release. I believe the reason at the time was due to the joint having been immobilised so long it would not extend any further. I think I ended up with about 5-10 degrees off the table top (not as good as NA first time round). Further recurrence meant I had another fasiectomy in July 2006. Same result achieved again - the rate of recurrence is frightening. Within months it was like the operation had never happened. At the same time, symptoms were kicking on my right hind (little finger PIP joint, again, and ring finger in the palm). As I've already had a fasiectomy on my left hand, NA is no longer an option there, even though my contraction is around 90 degrees.

I was extremely keen to avoid surgery again.

Mr. Bainbridge performed NA on my right hand on 2nd August, and the results are extremely good so far, although given how aggressive my case seems to be, I'm not holding out too much hope for the long term. We'll see. Left hand is going to have to have something serious done about it pretty soon.

Comparing NA in Paris and UK was interesting. Mr. Bainbridge is a strong advocate of splinting, both during the day and night, after the operation. In Paris, there was no mention of splinting at all. I also received some Kenalog, which didn't happen in Paris. Again, we'll have to see what happens there.

So having been through all of that, as a resident of the UK, I'm still of the opinion that I would rather have several bouts of NA than even one open fasicectomy. It also felt much more reassuring using a UK practioner than having to go to Paris.

Hope that answers some of your questions.

Michael