Bones in the wrist, hand, and fingers can break from a fall or while playing sports. Trauma from a car accident can also cause such fractures. Breaks can range from simple fractures to complex when the bone shatters into many pieces. In some cases, the bone can pierce the skin.
Dr. Livingston treats a full range of hand and wrist fractures utilizing X-Ray or MRI to assess the injury and help determine the best course to take for correction. This procedure may include splinting and casting, closed reduction, open reduction, internal fixation, external fixation, or bone grafts.
As the wrist heals, it’s crucial to keep the fingers free and flexible unless there is another injury which would require the fingers to be immobilized. The finger could become stiff and hamper hand function otherwise.
Ligaments are fibrous bands of tissue that join bones together to stabilize joints (like the knuckle or wrist) during motion. An injury to these tendons can occur throughout the hand and wrist through blunt trauma like a fall, forceful lifting, or a twisting injury.
If the impact that caused the injury is from a high fall or automobile accident, the damage may be so severe a dislocation may have taken place. This trauma forces the bones out of natural alignment, producing deformity and pain. X-Rays will confirm the dislocation which requires immediate attention to realign the bones to their normal position. Surgery may be necessary as well.
Digital injuries (fingers) often result from a jamming sports-type injury or a fall which forces the finger to bend backward. Most digital injuries can be treated conservatively, with surgery being rare.
Some tendons have roles less significant than others. If a whole ligament is lost to an injury, Dr. Livingston can transfer less important tendons to replace injured ligament which has a more critical function.
The hand consists of four nerves which may be damaged due to injury. Nerve injury can cause numbness, pressure, and pain. It can also lead to loss of movement or functions.
Nerves and vessels of the fingers and hand are delicate, with some being very small. When injured by laceration or trauma, microsurgical techniques are necessary to repair such injuries requiring tedious precision and skill.
Although some nerves may heal on their own if bruised when a nerve is cut it will need surgery for repair. Recovery varies from patient to patient, depending on the nerve injured.
On occasion, bone sections may be missing or severely crushed producing a gap once the bone is re-aligned. In these cases, Dr. Livingston may perform a bone. This procedure involves bone taken from another part of the body to fill in the void. He may also use bone from a bone bank or a synthetic bone substitute.
The intricate nature of burn trauma requires Dr. Livingston to work through the crucial stage of the injury up to and including recovery. He uses a multifaceted approach which includes the most advanced techniques in wound and burn care, rehabilitation, and plastic and reconstructive surgery.
He closes burn wounds with early surgical interventions, a technique which is recognized as an essential component to improving the success rate with burn injuries. He also corrects deformity and dysfunction.