Hand Surgery
At Tays, we examine and treat diseases and injuries of the hand and upper extremity that require a surgery. We are responsible, among other things, for the repair of severe hand injuries, such as dismemberment of a limb or part of it, and their follow-up treatment.
At Tays we treat, for example, the following:
- congenital upper extremity malformations
- hand and wrist osteoarthritis
- tumours
- stress-induced upper extremity disorders
- nerve compressions and pain conditions
- injuries in the hand and wrist area and their sequelae
- tumours and injuries in peripheral nerves.
Examinations and treatment at Tays
X-ray and magnetic resonance imaging examinations are often necessary when the patients are examined. Their need is usually considered in an outpatient clinic visit, sometimes even based on a referral. If nerve compression is suspected, electroneuromyography examinations will be carried out. Some of the examinations can also be carried out at health centres.
In the treatment of joint diseases, we use arthroscopic surgery to address problems in the hand and wrist area in particular if the problem being treated does not require an open body cavity surgery. Around 60 per cent of the patients who are not in need of urgent treatment can be operated on a day-case basis, in which case the patient can be discharged on the same day. The operating hand surgeon always examines the patient before the operation.
Rehabilitation is of crucial significance in the surgical treatment of a hand. The patients will receive guidance from a physiotherapist both on the ward and at the outpatient clinic. After the operation, it may be necessary to protect the hand with a plaster splint or individual orthoses (technical aids that support the extremity or correct its position) prepared by an occupational therapist. Orthoses may also be used on patients who have not undergone a surgery.
Hand and upper extremity surgeries and procedures have been centralised in Tays Central Hospital and Tays Hatanpää Hospital. Conditions such as the carpal tunnel syndrome are mostly operated at Tays Hatanpää Hospital.
Special expertise at Tays
Tays has a nationwide centralized on-call hand surgery duty. It means that the entire central Finland's severe upper limb injuries, such as dismemberment or crushing injuries of a limb or part of it, are treated in Tays.
Tays is a hub of special competence in wrist surgery with expertise in the use of endoscopic surgery in the procedures. Tays also has years of experience in the treatment of congenital upper extremity malformations. Repairing them often calls for the use of microsurgical technique and collaboration with other specialties.
The personnel of the Hand Surgery Unit have extensive experience in the treatment of hand injury patients. The physiotherapists and occupational therapists who also work at the unit have a crucial role in attaining a good functional outcome.
Person in charge
Chief Physician Olli Leppänen