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​Do you have fingers bent it with thick cords in your palm- you may have dupuytren’s contracture.
Overview
Dupuytren’s contracture is a conditions that gradually develops over time. The tissue beneath the skin of your palm is affected by this condition. Tissue knots accumulate beneath the skin, eventually forming a strong cord capable of pulling your fingers into a bent posture.
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The affected fingers are unable to fully straighten, making routine tasks like placing your hand in your pocket, putting on gloves, and shaking hands more difficult.
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Dupuytren’s contracture impacts daily activities in the later stages of the condition and is generally common in males of Northern European heritage. There are various modalities of treatment available for the management of the conditions once the condition progresses.
Symptoms
Dupuytren’s contracture may present as nodules or bumps in the hand which may stay without changing for a long while. The lumps are generally firm and stuck to the skin of the palm. Skin can seem thicker and puckered. You may sometimes also see little pits next to the nodules. The nodules gradually progress to form cords in the palm and extend into the fingers and they may sometimes be mistaken as tendons to one or more fingers. Once significantly bent this interferes with day to day activities. In the initial phases this can be managed non operatively. As they progress they pull the fingers into the palm and this makes it difficult to straighten the fingers and may require surgical intervention. Lumps and cords can develop on the soles of the feet (plantar fibromatosis) or the genital location in men (Peyronie’s disease). Occasionally, the disease will cause thickening on top of the knuckles called a knuckle pad (or Garrod’s pad).
Normally, the tendons that flex (flex) the fingers glide effortlessly in the tunnels through which they run. When the tendons develop a fullness or lump, they are unable to glide freely in the tunnel. The irregular mobility of the tendon may impede both bending and straightening (like a rope with a knot trying to move through a pulley). These can be treated with early splinting, hand therapy stepping up to steroid injections and in recalcitrant cases surgical intervention