“This will be our fifth year doing it,” said Dr. Adam Dann, a hand and upper extremity surgeon with Kettering Health.
Kettering Health expects to do 10 to 20 hand surgeries on Sept. 18 with the more prominent surgeries being for carpal tunnel syndrome, trigger finger, arthritis in the thumb, and more elective-type conditions that patients may be putting off. The average total costs of some of these surgeries range between $2,000 to $4,000, or more depending on the surgery.
“This gives them an opportunity to be seen,” Dann said.
Individuals with those conditions or any of the following conditions who do not have medical insurance or are underinsured might be eligible for treatment on Kettering Health’s Hand Day Dayton: cubital tunnel syndrome, De Quervain’s tenosynovitis, mucous cysts, or ganglion cysts.
Hand Day Dayton is being done in partnership with the Touching Hands Project from the American Society for Surgery of the Hand, which aims to provide hand surgeries, rehabilitation, and medical training in underserved communities throughout the world. While many doctors have provided help internationally through mission work and organizations like Doctors Without Borders, Dann noted there are local individuals who may not be able to access this kind of care due to cost restraints.
“There’s a need domestically, as well, for patients who may not have insurance coverage,” Dann said.
To find out if you are a candidate for free hand surgery, request a free consultation by calling (937) 558-0155 or filling out the form at ketteringhealth.org/handday.
What are the symptoms of hand and wrist conditions?
From carpal tunnel syndrome to cysts, the range of hand and wrist conditions Kettering Health will address on Hand Day Dayton involve some type of pain in those areas, along with some issues that include lumps or nodules forming.
According to Kettering Health’s Hand Center, carpal tunnel syndrome is when there is swelling in the carpal tunnel, which is a space in the wrist where a nerve and nine tendons connect the forearm to the hand, and that swelling compresses the median nerve.
The American College of Rheumatology estimates carpal tunnel syndrome impacts four to 10 million Americans. According to Kettering Health’s Hand Center, carpal tunnel syndrome can impact individuals who frequently grip something tightly or use their wrists consistently, such as cashiers, cyclists, and musicians, as well as individuals who use equipment that vibrates, like jackhammers.
Symptoms, which are usually experienced at night, include tingling, numbness, and pain in the thumb, index, and middle fingers.
De Quervain’s tenosynovitis involves irritation and swelling of the tunnel that surrounds the thumb tendons as they pass from the wrist to the thumb. It can be caused by overuse, repetitive motion, pregnancy, or rheumatoid arthritis. Symptoms of De Quervain’s tenosynovitis include twinges of pain at the base of the thumb or the thumb side of the wrist. Pain is usually worse when forcefully grasping things or lifting items.
Ganglion cysts are lumps in the hand, which form when tissues surrounding certain joints become inflamed and swell. Ganglion cysts have been associated with rheumatoid arthritis or excessive overuse of joints in the wrist and fingers. Symptoms include lumps and pain in that area, which will increase with extended use of the hand. Ganglion cysts may also impact the individual’s range of motion.
Trigger finger occurs when tendons in the hand that control the bending of the finger become swollen, which causes pressure to build in the sheath and a knot or nodule forms. Symptoms include soreness at the base of the finger, painful clicking, or snapping when attempting to flex or extend the affected finger. In more severe cases, the affected finger will lock in a flexed or extended position.
Trigger finger affects approximately 2% of the population, and it is most common among women in their 50s and 60s. It is also common with patients with diabetes and rheumatoid arthritis.
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