By Matt Haase, MSOT, OTR/L, ATC
Our hands are often taken for granted. As humans, we interact with our world through our hands. We use them to communicate, entertain, and even express affection. It is not until something happens to our hands that we truly recognize the role they play in everyday function and daily living. Minor hand injuries such as a cut or bruise can affect our performance of everyday tasks, causing discomfort and inconvenience. However, more serious injuries can result in greater loss of function and independence, leaving you or a loved one struggling to cope with changes in function while continuing to try to meet life’s demands.
The hand and wrist are made up of over 30 muscles, making it one of the most complex segments of the human body! The complexity of the hand plays a critical role in our ability to interact with our environment and perform the many small, intricate movements we rely on in our everyday lives. Fine motor control is defined as the coordination of muscles, bones, and nerves to produce small, exact movements in our wrist and hand. It is essential in our ability to manage buttons and zippers on clothing, feed ourselves, manage medications, sort money, turn the pages of a book, and countless other everyday activities. Impairments in fine motor control can occur with any hand injury and the impact can often be profound. Many injuries can cause loss of fine motor control and may result in increased time, difficulty, and frustration in completing what were previously simple everyday tasks.
An Occupational Therapist (OT) is an expert in upper extremity rehabilitation, frequently encountering and treating various conditions – both new and old – of the shoulder, elbow, wrist, and hand. OTs are trained in treating a wide variety of conditions that may impact function of the arm and hand. This includes fractures, lacerations, burns, amputations, surgical repair to bones, tendons, and nerves. Neurological conditions such as Parkinson’s Disease and stroke can also affect functional use of the arm and hand with everyday activities. The specialized training OTs receive equips them to address the underlying factors that may impede a person’s ability to complete everyday activities. These limitations often include pain, swelling, mobility, strength, scarring, and sensitivities to textures and temperatures. At the root of it all, an OT is trained to maximize the FUNCTION of your arm and hand to get you back to doing the things you need and want to do throughout the day!
OTs are well versed in the rehabilitation of fine motor skills and fine motor coordination to return individuals to their previous level of function following injury. OTs can modify and adapt tasks to account for the limitations individuals living with chronic conditions, such as Parkinson’s Disease, may experience due to tremor in their hands. Some common modifications and adaptive equipment utilized by OTs include adaptive utensils to decrease food spillage when feeding or built-up grips on self-care items to improve control and coordination while eating or when brushing teeth or hair. OTs are experts in activity modification and adaptation that assist individuals in performing activities meaningful to them.
Don’t accept loss of function and increased difficulty with everyday tasks as a normal part of aging, especially when it comes to your arms and hands. Our team of Occupational Therapists at Virginian Rehabilitation and Wellness are trained in treating all conditions of the shoulder, elbow, wrist, and hand and can develop a personalized treatment plan according to your needs to maximize your independence and function in performing your everyday activities!