What you HAVE to know about Trigger Finger

I did a wrist and forearm massage video a few days ago and my mom (bless her heart) sent it to our neighbor who has trigger finger. I immediately panicked because that video was not for trigger finger! That was for tennis elbow, De Quervain tenosynovitis, and thumb tendinitis! So even though it’s not the worst thing in the world, I must tell you that massaging the dorsal part of your hand, wrist, and thumb has very little effect on trigger finger and here is why. Trigger finger is caused by the enlargement of the finger flexor and the A1 pulley of the tendon sheath. All these sits in the palmar side of your hand, not dorsal side. Dorsal side is the back side of the hand. If you were to massage the tendons that are tight in a trigger finger for the purpose of releasing tension for the affected tendon, you would massage the finger flexor and everything else in the palmar side of the hand, wrist, and forearm. But wait! Massaging the wrong side of the hand is not the worst thing to do for trigger finger. The worst thing to do for trigger finger is not doing anything about it and hoping it would just go away on its own. What you must realize about trigger finger is that the longer you leave it along, the more the finger adapts to the now deformed position. The best thing to do for trigger finger is to first keep the finger from triggering. Now is when you ask how do I keep the finger from triggering? Well, you need to splint your finger. There are basically two finger splints that are designed to keep the finger from triggering. There is the oval 8 finger brace and there is what I call the T brace. The oval 8 finger brace immobilizes the PIP joint of the finger, and the T brace immobilizes the knuckle (or the MP joint) of the finger. There is a splint that immobilizes both, but that is usually not necessary. Of all the finger braces for trigger finger, I like the T brace best because it allows you to use your hand for pretty much everything except activities that require you to make a fist or grip something hard. You need to wear the brace for 6-8 weeks, almost 24/7, to have good result. After that, you can do some finger exercises to restore range of motion to your finger because it will be stiff from being immobilized for 8 weeks. DISCLAIMER: If you're experiencing pain, numbness, or tingling down into your hand, I strongly encourage you to go get it checked out by a local doctor or physical therapist. The exercises I present in this video are very general and may of may not be indicated for your specific problem. You are encouraged to seek local help from a professional who can recommend treatment specific to your individual needs.

Post-splinting finger ROM exercises by Forward Therapy: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zvnv_tOheng