Normally, surgery is performed using general anesthesia in which the patient is asleep. General anesthesia is not necessary for many surgeries and can be risky in some cases. Wide awake surgery is a technique that avoids this problem and can be performed in an operating room or in the office. It is commonly used for problems of the hand and wrist.
A sprained thumb is an injury to a ligament, which is a soft tissue that connects bones to each other at the joints to keep it stable, as opposed to a thumb fracture (break) which is an injury to the bone. The ulnar collateral ligament is the most injured ligament in the thumb. This particular ligament connects the thumb to the hand on the side closest to your index finger.
Shoulders are among the most frequently injured joints in the body, with the main culprit stemming from the rotator cuff, the part of the shoulder that allows you to lift and rotate your arms. Over 3 million Americans each year are affected by rotator cuff problems.
Physical rehabilitation and osteopathic manipulative techniques can treat different aspects of “runner’s knee,” to alleviate tight muscles and tender points within the joint or muscle and increase range of motion.
An emerging technology could zap your post-op pain away — little or no opioids needed. The technique is called percutaneous peripheral nerve stimulation.
