Conditions and injuries of the finger, hand, wrist, forearm and elbow: what they are, how they behave, and when they stop being minor.
Gymnast’s wrist is a stress injury to the radius growth plate from weight-bearing on bent-back wrists. It needs a full stop on hand weight-bearing for at least 4 to 6 weeks, often 3 months if the X-ray has changed, then a staged return.
Little league elbow is growth plate irritation on the inner elbow of a young thrower, and most children are back throwing in 6 to 12 weeks if it’s caught early. Outer elbow pain, catching or a sudden pop needs a doctor, not rest.
Partial UCL tears in throwers often settle with 6 to 12 weeks of no throwing and a graded return, about 3 to 6 months in all. A complete tear in a pitcher usually means Tommy John surgery and 12 to 18 months before competitive pitching.
An olecranon fracture takes about 6 to 12 weeks for the bone to heal and 3 to 6 months for full strength. Whether you can straighten your elbow against gravity decides splint or surgery.
A torn distal biceps tendon is best repaired within about 2 to 3 weeks, before it retracts and needs a graft. The arm still bends, so people wait. The hook test takes seconds.
Most radial head fractures heal in about 6 to 8 weeks without surgery, with the sling off within days. What decides treatment is whether the fragment blocks rotation; what decides your outcome is how early you move it.
Radial tunnel syndrome is a squeezed nerve below the outer elbow that causes deep forearm aching without numbness, tender four finger-widths below the bony point. Most cases settle in 3 to 6 months with load changes, a night splint and nerve gliding.
Pronator teres syndrome is the median nerve squeezed in the upper forearm instead of the wrist: same tingling fingers, but the palm goes numb too and it rarely wakes you. Most cases settle in 6 to 12 weeks with load change, a night splint and nerve glides.
If you suddenly can’t make a round OK sign, or can’t lift your fingers at the knuckles, and nothing is numb, think AIN or PIN palsy. Get assessed within days; many recover over 6 to 18 months, and your job meanwhile is keeping every joint moving.
Adult forearm fractures are usually plated and take 3 to 4 months to heal, with most people back to heavy work and sport at 4 to 6 months. Rotation is the movement to chase, and a single-bone fracture means both the elbow and wrist need checking.