Dupuytren’s contracture

If one or more fingers contort, the cause could be based on Dupuytren’s contracture (Dupuytren’s disease as it is also known) which frequently occurs in older people. It usually occurs without an apparent cause, first on one hand, and is based on a thickening and contraction of connective tissue in the area of the palm. As a result, the tissue which is necessary to extend the fingers is absent and there is a visible contortion.

Symptoms: In the initial stage, hard nodes usually form in the palms which, at first, do not affect the mobility of the fingers. In the course of time visible contortions of the fingers are caused which are associated with increased functional impairment of the hand. In the case of pronounced features, in the late stage, the digital nerves are also affected.

Therapy: With Dupuytren’s contracture, an attempt can be made at an early stage to delay the process of the disease through local injection. If there are movement restrictions in the fingers, in most cases we repair the functionality of the hand again with the surgical removal of the shrunken tissue.

Details of therapies can be found under hand surgery.