Tendonitis, Tendon Injuries and Laceration Conditions

What is tendonitis?

Tendonitis is irritation and inflammation of a tendon in the hand or wrist. Tendons are strong, cord-like tissues that connect muscles in the forearm to the bones of the hand and fingers, allowing movement. As they travel through tight spaces in the wrist and fingers, healthy tendons glide smoothly with motion.

When a tendon becomes inflamed, this smooth gliding is disrupted, leading to pain, stiffness, tenderness, and sometimes a catching or clicking sensation with movement.

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Illustration showing the muscles and tendons of the forearm, hand and wrist.

Overview

Symptoms

Symptoms of a tendon injury can include:

Sudden loss of wrist or finger movement after a cut, puncture or blunt injury
Drooping of the end of the finger after jamming injury (mallet finger)
Clicking, popping, or grinding sensation with wrist/finger movements
Pain or stiffness in the hand or finger along the tendons

Causes

There are many causes of both acute and chronic tendon injuries, including:

Lacerations (cuts) and puncture wounds to the hand/wrist/forearm
Even small cuts to the skin can result in multiple cut tendons
Blunt trauma or sudden heavy loads may cause tendon rupture without a cut
Minor “jamming” injuries of the fingers may cause tendon rupture (mallet finger)
Inflammatory diseases (rheumatoid arthritis) can cause spontaneous tendon ruptures
Overuse can cause chronic tendon injuries
Prior surgeries and hardware implants can result in tendon adhesions or ruptures

Diagnosis

Why treatment matters

Nonoperative treatment

Activity modification recommendations
Splinting
Anti-inflammatory medications
Steroid injections
Hand therapy

Operative treatment

Acute tendon lacerations and ruptures almost always require urgent surgical repair for the best outcome. Once the tendon retracts and scars in, it can be difficult or impossible to repair, and generally will not heal on its own. If you have sustained a cut to your fingers, hand, or wrist, and are no longer able to normally move a finger, please seek urgent medical attention.

Even small skin wounds can hide a surprising amount of deep damage to the tendons and nerves. We can usually surgically repair cut tendons diagnosed within the first few days. The procedure typically involves a regional numbing block of your arm, followed by some sedation in the operating room, and suturing the cut or ruptured tendons. After surgery, it is critically important to follow all your surgeon’s recommendations for activity limitations, splinting and hand therapy to reduce the risk of permanent stiffness and rupture of the tendon repair.

Take the next step

Our board-certified specialists are here to help you heal. They can often diagnose the problem in one visit and get you started with a personalized treatment plan. We offer a wide variety of treatment options.