Torn LCL

[Daniel]

hey all how are you?

im an acrobat and about 5 weeks ago i dislocated my middle finger and completely tore my LCL (i think thats what it is? its the ligament that runs down the side of my finger at the middle joint). The joint is quite unstable and very swollen still, Ive been to see my physio and he says that the ligament will deffinatly connect its self back together. Basically i just want know if that is not the case or weather it deffininatly will!! i realise its only a finger but it will have quite a dramatic effect on me if it does not!

Ive been testing it every week (being carefull as to not damage it further) but it does not feel even the slightest bit more stable every time i test it??

any help is much appreciated.

cheers
Dan

[Heidi]

Hi

I think the healing depends on the particular injury. A partial rupture should heal absolutely fine. If it is really a complete rupture then it should have been immobilised using a buddy taping to encourage healing. Although in most cases, the healing is sufficient, this does depend on the individual and their occupation/activities and how much stress they put on the joint. Obviously you need good stability to the joint so if this doesn't improve then surgery may be required.
But I really would leave this as a last resort.
Strengthening the muscles which control finger movement may help.

[mark315]

have had the same injury don't test your finger every week you will do damage to your finger (how are you testing it) as the great heidi has said you have to buddy your finger for at least 6weeks after that you should support your finger with some sort of taping when testing your finger but it will take at least 6 to 8 weeks before it heels enough to start testing it