Hand and wrist surgery in Windsor

As we use our hands almost constantly throughout the day, any issue with our hands or wrists can quickly become debilitating, affecting our work, our hobbies, and our ability to carry on with our normal daily routine.

If you’ve been dealing with pain in your hands or wrists, this may be all too familiar for you. When it’s reached the point where you want to seek medical advice, you won’t want to wait for answers.

By booking a private appointment with one of our dedicated Hand & Wrist consultants at Princess Margaret, you are guaranteed to be seen and treated by a consultant from start to finish. By providing an accurate diagnosis promptly and starting you on a personalised treatment plan, our orthopaedic consultants offer exemplary care to get you back to good health without delay.

Common symptoms indicating you may have a condition in your hands and wrists include:

• Pain, usually in the joints
• Lumps in the hand and wrist
• Deformity of the joint
• Swelling in the joints
• Nerve problems, giving numbness, pins & needles
• Difficulty moving fingers or wrist
• Problems with contractions of the hand (Dupuytren’s disease)
• Pain related to injuries – damaged ligaments and broken bones

If any of these symptoms are applicable to you, why not book an appointment with us at Princess Margaret?

Offering a streamlined service to get you a diagnosis and treatment promptly, our expert consultants are available for patients based in Windsor, Berkshire and further afield.

The nature of your treatment will depend on the severity of your symptoms and the diagnosis itself. Conservative treatments are normally trialled first, as many conditions can be effectively managed without the need for surgery.

The first level of treatment would normally include painkillers, splinting (to help support the tendons), or supplements for arthritis, which can be picked up from our on-site pharmacy.

Your consultant can advise you on how to best modify your activities during rehabilitation so as to avoid exacerbating any issues or injuries. In conjunction with painkillers and physiotherapy, this can be particularly effective.

Steroid injections are commonly used to help with inflammation and painful joints, arthritis, or carpal tunnel syndrome, and are administered directly into the joint. This can be done under ultrasound guidance for added accuracy, and your consultant can advise you if this is appropriate for your condition.

Surgery may be considered when other non-surgical measures have been ineffective in reducing your pain.

Carpal Tunnel Release is one of the more common surgeries performed at Princess Margaret, involving a cut in the palm of your hand to allow your consultant to release the pressure on the nerve going from your wrist to your hand. This is done under a local anaesthetic, and can often be performed as a day case.

Dupuytren’s disease can be treated with a procedure to remove the chord that is causing the finger to bend downwards, and again can be done under local anaesthetic.

If surgery on the wrist is needed, this is typically done with a regional or general anaesthetic. With support from an expert theatre team, your safety and wellbeing are kept a priority throughout.

When you come to Princess Margaret for your initial consultation, your consultant will first take a detailed medical history, and ask you to describe your symptoms. They will likely ask you:

• What symptoms have you been experiencing?
• How long have these symptoms lasted?
• Have they become progressively worse over time?
• What type of pain is it? Pain when moving or nerve pain?
• Is the pain localised or does it spread up through your arm?
• Have you tried any treatments previously?
• Are you currently taking any medication?

Seeing our consultants privately brings the benefit of longer consultations, usually around 30 minutes, allowing for much greater detail and a chance to get to know you and how your condition has been affecting you.

They will then perform a clinical examination of your hand and/or wrist, manipulating the joint and pressing along the hand to assess your responses. They may also ask you to perform some simple tasks and movements to demonstrate your symptoms.

Sometimes this is enough to make a firm diagnosis, but further investigations may be carried out to confirm any suspected condition or injury.

Typically, your consultant will start out with an x-ray to get an idea of the bony structure of the hand and wrist. This allows them to rule out the bony structures if there are no abnormalities, instead focusing on the soft structures, such as the tendons, ligaments, muscles and nerves. Depending on the availability of our radiologists, an x-ray may be arranged on the same day.

An ultrasound can help when looking at structures close to the skin, and an MRI or CT scan is useful for deeper structures, and all of these scans can be arranged in our on-site Imaging unit.

In some cases, your consultant may request an assessment from one of our dedicated Hand Therapists in order to assist with diagnosis and offer expert hand therapy treatments, which can be crucial in getting good outcomes.

Occasionally, an arthroscopy of the wrist may be used for the purposes of diagnosis if your scans have been inconclusive. Certain procedures can then be carried out at the same time, saving the need for further surgery.

A definitive treatment plan can then be introduced, and may include steroid injections, physiotherapy, or if necessary, an operation. Your consultant can outline all possible treatment options, allowing you to make the final decision.

Choosing to have your Hand & Wrist treatment at Princess Margaret comes with a host of benefits, such as:

• Assessments ASAP – If you’ve been experiencing any of the associated symptoms of a hand and/or wrist condition, you won’t want to wait to be seen. Our consultants can see you for an assessment without delay, getting you an accurate diagnosis rapidly, starting you on the necessary treatment before your symptoms progress any further.
• Patient Satisfaction – 97.9% of patients in 2020 said they would happily recommend Princess Margaret Hospital to friends and family in an independent report, and we’re confident that you’ll agree. 98% also said that the quality of care here at Princess Margaret Hospital was either ‘very good’ or ‘excellent’. We aim to make your stay with us as comfortable as possible, and these results highlight our continued efforts to ensure this is achieved.
• One-Stop Shop – Some minor procedures can be done on the same day as your initial consultation, making Princess Margaret a ‘one-stop shop’ for certain treatments, such as steroid injections to relieve symptoms and ease your pain. With minimally-invasive procedures available under local anaesthetic, you’ll be able to recover quickly and get back to your normal routine as soon as possible.
• Personalised care – We believe in a bespoke approach to treatment, tailoring each experience to our patients’ needs and whatever may be best for you. This is regularly reviewed, ensuring you get the necessary treatment at every stage of your patient journey.
• A Multidisciplinary Approach – Our teams at Princess Margaret work in tandem with each other to provide you with the best possible care from start to finish. Working closely with Hand Therapists and a dedicated physiotherapy team, alongside specialist musculoskeletal radiographers, anaesthetists, and nurses, you have support from medical professionals every step of the way during your treatment.
• Convenient appointments – With flexible appointments available at dedicated clinics from Monday to Saturday, you are sure to find an appointment slot that suits your needs and availability.

If pain in your hand or wrist has been concerning you, why not book a consultation with one of our orthopaedic specialists today? Our consultants can outline all treatment options for you promptly, arranging any necessary diagnostic scans, treatment and surgery if required.

For peace of mind and expert care, book an appointment online now.