El­bow + Hand Spe­cia­list
Or­tho­pe­dist Vienna

Ten­nis el­bow, me­di­cally known as epi­con­dy­li­tis hu­meri ra­dia­lis, is a pain­ful in­flamm­a­tion of the ten­don at­tach­ments on the outer el­bow. The cause is usually an over­load of the fo­re­arm mus­cles, which can lead to small te­ars in the ten­dons. Those af­fec­ted com­plain of pain on the out­side of the el­bow, which wor­sens with mo­ve­ment and stress. Com­mon sym­ptoms also in­clude li­mi­ted grip­ping ability and a fee­ling of we­ak­ness in the forearm. 

Tre­at­ment: Tre­at­ment of­ten in­cludes con­ser­va­tive me­thods such as im­mo­bi­liza­tion, phy­sio­the­rapy, anti-in­flamm­a­tory me­di­ca­tion, and in­fil­tra­ti­ons. In se­vere ca­ses, sur­gery may be necessary. 

Gol­fer’s el­bow, also cal­led epi­con­dy­li­tis hu­meri ul­naris, is an in­flamm­a­tion of the ten­don at­tach­ments on the in­ner el­bow. This con­di­tion of­ten oc­curs with ove­r­use of the flexor mus­cles of the fo­re­arm. Those af­fec­ted ex­pe­ri­ence pain on the in­side of the el­bow, which wor­sens with cer­tain mo­ve­ments, such as grip­ping or tur­ning the forearm. 

Tre­at­ment: The­rapy of­ten in­cludes con­ser­va­tive me­a­su­res such as rest, phy­sio­the­rapy, anti-in­flamm­a­tory me­di­ca­tion, and in­fil­tra­ti­ons. If sym­ptoms per­sist, sur­gi­cal tre­at­ment may be considered. 

Car­pal tun­nel syn­drome (CTS) is a com­mon nerve com­pres­sion dis­or­der in which the me­dian nerve in the wrist is con­stric­ted. This leads to sym­ptoms such as numb­ness, ting­ling, and pain in the th­umb, in­dex, and middle fin­gers. In ad­van­ced ca­ses, there may also be mus­cle we­ak­ness and was­ting in the the­nar emi­nence. The sym­ptoms of­ten oc­cur at night or with cer­tain hand movements. 

Tre­at­ment: Tre­at­ment ran­ges from con­ser­va­tive me­thods such as wrist splints, phy­sio­the­rapy, and anti-in­flamm­a­tory me­di­ca­tion to sur­gi­cal pro­ce­du­res in which the car­pal tun­nel is wi­dened to re­duce pres­sure on the nerve.

Trig­ger fin­ger, also known as steno­sing teno­syn­ovi­tis, is a con­di­tion in which the flexor ten­dons of the fin­gers are blo­cked by thi­c­ke­ned ten­don sheaths. This cau­ses the af­fec­ted fin­ger to lock in a bent po­si­tion and can only be straigh­tened again with a “snap.” Cau­ses are of­ten ove­r­use or re­pe­ti­tive movements. 

Tre­at­ment: Tre­at­ment in­cludes con­ser­va­tive me­a­su­res such as im­mo­bi­liza­tion, anti-in­flamm­a­tory me­di­ca­tion, and in­jec­tions. In per­sis­tent ca­ses, sur­gery may be ne­ces­sary to wi­den the ten­don sheaths. 

A gan­glion, col­lo­qui­ally known as a hy­groma, is a be­nign, fluid-fil­led cyst that oc­curs near joints or ten­dons. Gan­glia of­ten oc­cur on the wrist or fin­gers and can cause pain, ten­der­ness, or rest­ric­ted mo­ve­ment, alt­hough they are of­ten painless. 

Tre­at­ment: Tre­at­ment ran­ges from con­ser­va­tive me­thods such as im­mo­bi­liza­tion and punc­ture to re­move the fluid to sur­gi­cal re­m­oval of the gan­glion if it cau­ses dis­com­fort or recurs.

Rhi­z­ar­thro­sis is a form of ar­thro­sis that af­fects the car­po­me­ta­car­pal joint of the th­umb. It is cau­sed by wear and tear of the ar­ti­cu­lar car­ti­lage, which leads to pain, swel­ling, and rest­ric­ted mo­bi­lity. Those af­fec­ted of­ten have dif­fi­culty with grip­ping mo­ve­ments and ex­pe­ri­ence pain at the base of the thumb. 

Tre­at­ment: The­rapy in­cludes con­ser­va­tive me­a­su­res such as splints, phy­sio­the­rapy, anti-in­flamm­a­tory me­di­ca­tion, and in­jec­tions. In se­vere ca­ses, sur­gery, such as joint fu­sion or joint re­pla­ce­ment, may be necessary.