Finger/Thumb MCP replacement

Wyvern

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I just had the MCP in the middle finger on my dominant hand replaced yesterday. I have seen more information on PIP joint replacements, but not as much about MCP joints. Does anyone have any advice while I am recovering?

Thank you.
 
@Wyvern Welcome to BoneSmart. I am afraid you a trail blazer here. I don't think we have ever had anyone who has gone through this surgery.

Unfortunately our nurse director is off the board currently preparing for her own revision surgery. I am sure she will chime in with input when she is back. Meanwhile I hope you will keep us updated on your recovery.
 
I had MCP joint replacement August 23 2019. On my left hand and to say dominate is a understatement. I had a stroke in childhood that left my tight hand very little more than a claw. I had my index and middle finger MCP joints replaced and very interested in hearing others recovery. At 4 weeks I will say I’m very pleased. I’m just concerned if the implants will hold up to heavy maintenance work.
 
We're getting a few more hand patients, so I hope you all are able to connect and support each other whether you're pre-surgery or in recovery. I'd love to see more hand surgeries here and having active threads will help.
 
I had MCP joint replacement August 23 2019. On my left hand and to say dominate is a understatement. I had a stroke in childhood that left my tight hand very little more than a claw. I had my index and middle finger MCP joints replaced and very interested in hearing others recovery. At 4 weeks I will say I’m very pleased. I’m just concerned if the implants will hold up to heavy maintenance work.
I am glad to hear you are pleased with your results so far. How much flexion and extension do you have so far? I am still very limited on my movements. Nowhere close to a fist yet and I can't straighten my PIP joint as much as I would like yet. I had a significant injury more than 14 years ago and this is my sixth surgery on my hand, so there is a lot of previous scar tissue as well and I could not make a complete/tight fist or completely straighten them all out before this surgery though.
 
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I’m 4 weeks past surgery. I can’t make a fist but my therapist told me I’m still several weeks from that point in recovery. At this point I’m very pleased. The pain is gone from the arthritis and my fingers close sufficiently to do simple tasks like start a nut on a bolt.

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Wow - that's amazing results for only 4 weeks out @Old Ben ! Well done!
 
That does look quite good @Old Ben .
I just had a visit with my doctor today. He took off any rehab restrictions and said I don't need to wear the splint, it is to my discretion. My joint currently has a 30-60 degree range of motion. My PIP joint extension is still a concern of mine. The incision has healed very well though. I still have some swelling, which he stated will continue to go down, along with some light discoloration from bruising.
 
Sounds like you are recovering very well. I have therapy tomorrow & he plans to allow me stop using the splint. It will be 6 weeks from my surgery tomorrow. I am very pleased with my range of motion and absence of pain at this time. I do have a lot of swelling also. The incisions look excellent. I do have one issue that I am concerned about though. I have a popping in my middle finger replacement joint when I move it down. There is absolutely no pain and it is not causing any problems that I'm aware but I worry that it is a sign of something wrong. I plan to ask my therapist about the popping tomorrow.
 
How is your recovery going. @Old Ben ? In the last few weeks I felt my tendon pull through the scar tissue on the extension for my PIP joint, which gave me much hope, especially so far after surgery. That was a big concern of mine as flexion is easier to get back than extension most of the time. It still isn't where I would like it, but I can see some slight improvement. I am still quite restricted on my MCP joint flexion on my middle finger though. I have quite a bit of scar tissue that they were afraid to push through too early as they didn't want to harm the healing of the joint as that could be far worse. I still have more pain than prior to surgery, but I am still gaining strength and mobility back.
 
@Wyvern I think the recovery is going ok. I'm 13 weeks since surgery. The pain is much better than before the surgery. As you can see in the attached photos, the movement in the PIP & DIP joints are nearly normal but I'm having a lot of issues getting mobility in the MCP joints. I was expecting to be farther along by now. My doctor tells me that I have to break through the scar tissue as well but that hasn't happened. This past Wednesday she put me on a steroid pack hoping to relieve the inflammation. I go to 1 hour of therapy 3 days a week plus I work with the knuckles several times a day on my own. I'm retired but have returned to a lot of my normal activities which I can accomplish but at a much slower pace.
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Thank you all for sharing your stories. I am curious if anyone on this board has ever been assessed for a pyrocarbon joint replacement vs. the silicone joint?
 
Hi, I have a pyrocarbon mcp replacement. I am at five weeks today and really limited in my movement unless I am in a bucket of warm water.
 

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