Ski Injury Series - Hand and Wrist part 1
Welcome to the Ski Injury blog series by Gus from Kaizen Physiotherapy & Performance. This blog is an extension of the Infographic. Please note that neither the infographic nor this blog should replace on site medical attention! These are an educational resource to help boost knowledge. Click here for the infographic.
This leaflet as part of our collaboration with Massage Me, after some discussions around how we could help British ski goers navigate the confusion of dealing with a serious injury abroad. As Massage Me only provide massage and are unable to advise on any injuries, we have developed some educational content to share out. If you need more advice, you can book into Kaizen Physiotherapy & Performance’s injury advice service here.
A massive thanks to Mr Dan Shaerf, a specialist Hand and Wrist consultant with many years experience in dealing with these types of injuries. For more information, visit Dan’s website
Ski injuries suck, there’s no other way to say it. You’ve spent all year saving up, only to end up hurting yourself (more often than not it’s on the first run). I’ve experienced this with a close friend in the past, who unfortunately tore their ACL on the very first run. As I could speak French, I stayed with her during the rescue, transport down and for the trip to the medical centre. This unfortunate situation is the inspiration behind these infographics.
Before you go
At the risk of sounding like your mother, make sure you get insurance before you go. For the cost of one week of skiing, you can afford to pay £30 for some decent cover and it’s most definitely worth it if you look up the costs of the blood wagon alone. Important tip, if you’re planning on doing some off-piste skiing, make sure you’re covered by the insurer.
Other obvious things to mention include wearing a helmet, saving important contact details to your phone in case of emergency, and remembering it’s 112 in Europe rather than 999.
Operation vs No operation
Dan has very kindly given some good advice on the infographic. The advice is generic, but they’re points to keep in mind when speaking to the specialist in resort. The decision to operate or not is very much assessed on an individual basis. There are several factors that a specialist will assess and consider before making a decision. I’m going to explain in a little more detail below (some reasons are quite obvious!).
After a fracture, if there are any visible bones then the fracture is called an “open fracture”. If the bone has pierced the skin, it needs to be surgically fixed and the wound stiched back up.
Sometimes, the wrist can be dislocated along with the fracture. This will also need to be treated urgently.
If a nerve has been injured or compressed, pins and needles or numbness is usually reported as a symptom. Like an open fracture, this is often an urgent problem that should be sorted as soon as possible.
Having said that, the vast majority of wrist fractures aren’t that severe. Many can be treated in a cast initially, with definitive management being arrange back in the UK. Some wrist fractures may be less severe but ultimately need surgery. These injuries can usually happen a week or two after injury, without having a worse outcome in the long-term. An example as to how this can happen is that sometimes the broken bones are in a good enough position to heal well initially. But when the wrist is re-imaged to check on healing, it isn’t healing in the optimal way.
A thumb/finger fracture is usually put into a splint rather than a cast. Sometimes, they can seem quite minor injuries but they are worth being checked quickly. Finger injuries can become complicated very quickly and it’s actually quite debilitating if you can’t fully move or grip!
