Treatment begins with a consultation with your experienced specialist Consultant Plastic Surgeon, who will assess your condition and answer all of your questions about surgery.
Trigger Finger Release At A Glance
Time
from 45 minutes
Price
from £950 and £195 consultation
Treatment
Surgery with a Consultant
Recovery
1-2 weeks
Do
Keep hand mobile, elevate
Don't
Lift anything heavy
Trigger Finger Release Surgery in Leeds
Trigger Finger is a common condition where one of your fingers or thumb begins to stick or lock when you bend or straighten it. It is caused by swelling in the sheath around the tendon serving that finger, which stops the tendon from moving back and forth smoothly.
Sometimes Trigger Finger can be treated by rest or medication to reduce inflammation in the affected tendon sheath. Sometimes, a specialist minor surgical procedure is carried out to release the tension on the affected tendon, allowing it to return to a full range of movement.
Trigger Finger affecting the ring finger
What is Trigger Finger?
Trigger Finger is also known as stenosing tenosynovitis. It is a condition where you experience locking, clicking and pain in your fingers or thumb as you bend and straighten them.
It can affect any thumb or finger, including more than one at once. It's more common to find a patient has Trigger Finger in their dominant or writing hand, as they use it more heavily.
What causes Trigger Finger?
The tendons in your hand that serve your fingers each sit within a protective membrane sheath in which they glide back and forth as you bend your fingers.
If the membrane becomes inflamed (swollen), it makes it harder for the tendon to move, which in turn makes it difficult to bend or straighten the finger it connects to.
Eventually the finger can become stuck in a bent position, which is where the condition gets the name Trigger Finger from.
The sheath can become inflamed because of repetitive movements or long periods of gripping objects, and is often alongside conditions associated with inflammation such as rheumatoid arthritis, hypothyroidism and diabetes.
What are my options for Trigger Finger treatment?
The first treatment that most patients will try is corticosteroid injections to reduce the inflammation in the tendon sheath.
A surgeon carefully injects a steroid into the affected sheath. After a few weeks or more, lots of patients find that the swelling has reduced enough that they are now able to move their finger fully again.
If steroid injections have not been successful, or the condition returns, the next step is to have Trigger Finger Release surgery.
This is a procedure carried out under local anaesthetic where a surgeon makes an incision into the palm of your hand, accesses the affected tendon and carefully cuts the sheath to release the pressure on the tendon.
After surgery the wound is dressed to protect the area, and this dressing will be kept in place for around one week.
How long does it take for Trigger Finger steroid injections to work?
Most patients will begin to feel an improvement in the affected finger(s) within the first couple of weeks after treatment. It can take several more weeks to get the final results.
How long does it take for Trigger Finger Release Surgery to work?
Once the pressure on the tendon has been released, it can start to return to normal function. You may feel benefits straight away, though we would expect full recovery to take several weeks.
There may be some discomfort in the first week or so from the surgical wound itself, which will be be dressed by one of our nursing team.
When can I go back to work?
Most people can return to light activity and desk work within days of treatment. After surgery you may need to avoid driving for a few days. For sports and manual work, your surgeon may advise you to take several weeks away from these activities.
Your recovery time for the sorts of activities you carry out can be discussed in more detail in your initial Consultation, to help you plan ahead for your treatment.
Are there any complications of Trigger Finger treatment?
After steroid treatment, some patients find that the condition returns again over time. As they return to their original activities, the inflammation can return in the same way as they experienced in the past.
It's rare for Trigger Finger to return after release surgery.
Complications from Trigger Finger Release Surgery are usually limited to tenderness and irritation in the treated area as it heals.
We will discuss all the pros and cons of surgery in your Consultation, which will take place with the Consultant Plastic Surgeon who would carry out your procedure if you proceed to treatment.
Considering this procedure?
Trigger Finger Release Surgery Video
See a procedure carried out at Skin Surgery Clinic by one of our specialist Hand and Wrist Consultant Plastic Surgeons, Mr Robert Bains.
Trigger Finger Release Treatment prices
All procedures are carried out by a specialist Consultant Plastic Surgeon.
| Consultation with Consultant | £195 |
| Consultation including first Steroid Injection | £320 |
| Additional Steroid Injections | £250 |
| Trigger Finger Release Surgery | from £950 |
