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Thumb splint

Reg
Reg Community member Posts: 109 Pioneering
edited April 2021 in Cerebral palsy
Does anyone have any recommendations for thumb splints?

I have v mild CP and use one crutch to walk and, of course, the hand I use the crutch with is my worst hand as the little and ring fingers are clawed and the thumb on that hand is now catching and sticking when I bend it.

The crutch was recommended to stop falls and it has largely worked so happy with that. I used to have specialist hand braces made for me in the NHS but those days are long gone and , in any event , I don’t think I could use the crutch with a full hand brace as it would not let me bend my hand to hold the crutch and I have not got much grip anyway. 

Have tried hand operations on both hands in the past and over the years have had six of those - don’t want to go down that route and don’t want to cut down on my walking which is what is recommended. 

Neo g do a soft hand glove type thing but I suspect it won’t stop me from bending the thumb. 

If anyone has the same issues do you have any specific thumb splint recommendations for splints that don’t rub and could be used with a crutch then that would be great and very helpful before I start ordering the wrong sort. 

thank you 


Reg

I am a Scope volunteer.

Comments

  • Cher_Alumni
    Cher_Alumni Scope alumni Posts: 5,741 Disability Gamechanger
    edited April 2021
    Hi @Reg

    Thanks for asking this question.  As this isn't a topic I have in-depth knowledge about, I'm going to tag in our CP Specialist Information Officer @Richard_Scope so he can get back to you about it the next time he's on the community.  

    Also, I'm not sure if you're aware but we have an online CP café fortnightly, if that's something you might be interested in attending?  You can read this thread for more details :) 

    Hope you're having a nice relaxing Sunday!  Take care. 
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  • chiarieds
    chiarieds Community member Posts: 16,007 Disability Gamechanger
    Hi @Reg - I don't know if it's something you would consider, but I've been using a silver ring splint to stop my right thumb bending more than a little for nearly 4 years. I use elbow crutches outside, & abandoned my NHS wrist & thumb braces years ago, as they caused bruising, & were totally impracticable when walking with crutches.
    I had recurrent trigger thumb, & decided to try a silver ring splint rather than surgery, & it was the best thing I ever did. I bought mine from here: http://ringsplint.co.uk/    you will see pictures of thumb splints to prevent hyperextension, but I wear mine back to front to prevent flexion, so only one ring mainly shows at the front rather than the 2 (which are on my palm side). It's still just a little difficult using crutches, as I can't hold my crutch properly on this side, but is the best thing I've come across; in fact I wear it all the time. I bought mine for £44 including delivery, but had opted to pay a little more to get the hammered/plenished version, however you can also get these through the NHS.
  • Reg
    Reg Community member Posts: 109 Pioneering
    Thanks very much @chiarieds. I had not heard of these splints.

     Only issue is that I am allergic to metals but I can research into if they do hypo allergenic ones or something similar - anything that works.

    I would be more stable on two crutches but need a hand free to hold onto the dog - luckily he knows not to pull.

    As for surgery, in fairness my surgery gave me at least fifteen years of being able to use some fingers as they tied the tendons together so one set of tendons operated two fingers - looked odd but it sort of worked . Not sure if that option would help you ? 

    Will research the ring splints - thank you
    Reg

    I am a Scope volunteer.
  • Richard_Scope
    Richard_Scope Posts: 3,638 Scope online community team
    Hi @Reg
    There is a huge range of thumb splints and braces but like with most things in our situation it's a case of trial and error. Your G.P. should still refer you to an orthotist for assessment.
    Scope
    Specialist Information Officer and Cerebral Palsy Programme Lead

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  • Reg
    Reg Community member Posts: 109 Pioneering
    Thanks Richard . 

    Not asked the doctor for help this time as last time I went a few years ago about the fingers they said they advised to buy splints off the internet and that injecting the fingers wasn’t an option as only more surgery might help. 

    Was happy to refer me for more surgery although I don’t want that and didn’t want to take a consultant appointment away from someone who actually wanted more surgery. 

    Seemed an odd approach as you would think a surgical referral would cost the NHS a lot more than an orthotic referral.

    I will investigate the splints suggested earlier by @chiarieds and hopefully they will help 
    Reg

    I am a Scope volunteer.
  • Richard_Scope
    Richard_Scope Posts: 3,638 Scope online community team
    I agree, @Reg, that does seem a rather odd approach by the G.P. I hope the range of splints that I included in my previous post proves useful to you.
    Scope
    Specialist Information Officer and Cerebral Palsy Programme Lead

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