Understanding Dupuytren's Contracture

Dupuytren's Contracture relates to a hand deformity. The connective tissue in the hand will gradually become stiff and contract. The progression of this hand disability takes place over years sometimes, gradually disabling one hand or both.

Underneath the skin's surface, you will have many knots that form a cord which is thick. As a result, your fingers become bent into position, and you will not be able to straighten out your fingers at all. This makes it hard to do many tasks.

This type of contracture is not all that painful for most people. There are treatments out there that will help this condition from becoming totally disabling and also provide relief.

Symptoms of Dupuytren's Contracture are the presence of thickening skin. After that, the skin on your hands may be showing dimples. If this contracture is into the later stages, you will experience a tissue build-up that may travel all the way up into the fingers. When the cords become progressively tighter, your fingers will curl right up into your hand's palms, to the point where you cannot open or bend them. This contracture often favors the ring finger and the pinky. It is not too common in touching other fingers.

As far as the causes for this problem is concerned, it can be inherited. Tobacco use and diabetes also plays a role. Since diabetes affects the blood vessels along with smoking, this can wreak havoc on the joints, bones, and tendons in the hands.

Doctors will do a couple tests that will tell whether or not you have this hand disability. One of them is to simply lay your hand on the table. Try and get your hand to go flat. If you can't, this is a definite sign of the contracture.

The doctor will ask other questions such as how your hands operate. In other words, can you type, play the piano, or other things that require hands to curve.

People at risk for Dupuytren's contracture may have other related connective tissue diseases. Garrod's nodes is one example of another related disorder where knuckles form tissues over the fingers, or else there is also Plantar Fibromatosis where tissues form on the soles of the feet.

Treatment is required if the condition is causing you pain and interfering with many tasks.

Steroid injections are often a helpful treatment for this condition. You might need multiple injections before you can see any effects.

There is needle aponeurotomy that can be done. The procedure uses a needle that will find the offending tissue causing the problems, and the finger as a result, will become straight. This procedure is not too bad,and is very often done right in the doctor's office.

Surgery can be done if needed. One of the surgical procedures is known as a partial fasciectomy. This is done for later-term contractures in this disorder, and removes as much of the bad tissues as possible.

A complete fasciectomy is done which takes away all of the bad tissue in the hand. Since this more invasive procedure may take a lot of skin around the diseased tissues, skin replacement from another part of your body can be used to replace skin taken in order to correct the contracture. This procedure does carry risks though, and may make the hand more disabled still. So you need to explore this option carefully before having it done.

Amputations of the disabled fingers can also be done. Most people will try the needle aponeurotomy first before pursuing more radical actions.