Wrist Injury
- Wrist Injury Overview
- Wrist Injury Causes
- Wrist Injury Symptoms
- When to Seek Medical Care
- Exams and Tests
- Wrist Injury Treatment
- Medical Treatment
- Next Steps
- Follow-up
- Prevention
- Outlook
- Multimedia
- Synonyms and Keywords
- Authors and Editors
Wrist Injury Overview
The wrist is made up of the two bones of the forearm (the radius and ulna) and eight carpal bones (scaphoid or navicular, lunate, triquetrum, pisiform, trapezium, trapezoid, capitate, and the hamate). Many ligaments connect these bones to each other.
A sprain is an injury to the wrist ligaments without any evidence of bone injury (that is, no broken bones or cracks in the bone). With a sprain, there is usually only a partial tearing of the ligaments. In a severe wrist sprain, there can be a complete tear.
A fractured or broken wrist means there is a break or a crack in one or more of the bones of the wrist.
A strain is where there is a tearing of the muscle fibers in the area surrounding the wrist.
Next: Wrist Injury Causes »
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Wrist Injury
Hand Injury Overview
Intricate in design and function, the hand is an amazing work of anatomy. Form follows function in the hand; therefore, any injury to the underlying structures of the hand carries the potential for serious handicap. To reduce this risk, even the smallest hand injuries require a good medical evaluation.
The goal with injuries to the hand is a rapid and accurate initial evaluation. In other words, once an injury occurs, the doctor strives to begin medical treatment quickly so the short- and long-term effects can be minimized.
The hand consists of 27 bones when the 8 bones of the wrist are included. When the other associated structures (nerves, arteries, veins, muscles, tendons, ligaments, and joint cartilage) are considered, the potential for a variety of injuries exists when trauma involves the hand.
Hand injuries account for nearly 10% of hospital Emergency Department visits. A recent series of 1,000 consecutive hand injuries showed the ...
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