Hand Surgery Risks
- Details
- Published: Sunday, 21 June 2015 17:51
- Written by Dr Stuart Myers
- Hits: 10249
The risks associated with hand surgery are very small. With any surgery the risks need to be balanced against the potential benefits.
Potential problems of any hand surgery include, amongst others:
- Infection
- Complex Regional Pain Syndrome
- An abnormal reaction to injury or surgery which may cause severe pain, swelling & stiffness in the WHOLE ARM and last 6 or more months and may result in permanent disability. - Its cause is poorly understood. For more information see Specific Handout on this condition on my website.
- Nerve injuries - Loss of sensation, Tender lump, Pain
- Swelling
- Dressings too tight. In general if the plaster feels too tight it is.
- Bleeding / Bruising
- Stiffness
- Scar tenderness or thickening
Potential problems specific to particular operations include, amongst others:-
- Tendon irritation / rupture
- Plate or screw problems - Irritation of tendons
- Irritation of joint cartilage
- Loosening
- Breakage This may result in a 2nd operation to remove plates or screws.
- Deformity - over or under correction of deformity
- Recurrence of deformity or tumours
- Fractures – Malunion, Delayed union, non – union
- Other__________________________________________________________________________
- Particular operations may entail specific risks and so please feel free to discuss these with Dr Myers. Occasionally symptoms can be made worse by the surgery. Any of these complications may require further treatment or surgery.
- Anaesthetic – See particularly my website on Axillary Blocks. Feel free to discuss any concerns with the Anaesthetist.
What surgery can not do:________________________________________________________________
In the discussion of results & complications statistics are only a guide. Even with a 1 / 1,000,000 chance no-one can say if you are the 1 or the 999,999.
If you are concerned that there is a problem then contact your surgeon through the office. If it is out of hours you should phone the hospital where the surgery was performed and ask them to contact Dr Myers. If he is unavailable the hospital can contact one of the other Sydney Orthopaedic Specialists partners.
Revised 15 / 4 / 2015