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#1
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Funny Fingers
I've been training loads for the British Etape and am now finding that I'm
getting slightly "funny fingers" on one hand. Basically it's just the little finger on my left hand, for a number of hours, if not a day, later I cannot move my little finger back to its normal position and it curls up if I try and move it. I'm guessing that I've been resting on a nerve or something, just wondered if anyone had suffered something similar and what to do to fix? I do try and change hand positions ... And no, I'm not doing shadow puppetry .. http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1295/...c9df62.jpg?v=0 Thanks -- Tour de France Cyclosportive 2007 http://www.justgiving.com/tdfkingston |
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#2
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Funny Fingers
in message , elyob
') wrote: I've been training loads for the British Etape and am now finding that I'm getting slightly "funny fingers" on one hand. Basically it's just the little finger on my left hand, for a number of hours, if not a day, later I cannot move my little finger back to its normal position and it curls up if I try and move it. I'm guessing that I've been resting on a nerve or something, just wondered if anyone had suffered something similar and what to do to fix? I do try and change hand positions ... Palsy. No, I'm serious, but fortunately not a serious palsy. What is happening is that a nerve is being adversely affected by vibration. You need to change one of * gloves * bar tape or other bar covering * position * front forks (carbon ones significantly reduce vibration) Your object is either to damp out the vibration, or reduce the weight on your hands so that the nerve doesn't get it so much. It's normally the nerve that runs through the web of your hand between your thumb and forefinger that's the problem, but all nerves are vulnerable to vibration - there's even a palsy called 'sports car palsy' because it used to affect a significant proportion of drivers of (IIRC) the Triumph TR3, who habitually leant their leg against the gearbox when driving. I used to suffer from handlebar palsy quite badly, but cork bar tape and appropriate gloves have cored it for me. I find that gel doesn't work for me, but it does work for other people. -- (Simon Brooke) http://www.jasmine.org.uk/~simon/ Tony Blair's epitaph, #1: Tony Blair lies here. Tony Blair's epitaph, #2: Trust me. |
#3
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Funny Fingers
On Jun 23, 5:15 pm, "elyob" wrote:
I've been training loads for the British Etape and am now finding that I'm getting slightly "funny fingers" on one hand. Basically it's just the little finger on my left hand, for a number of hours, if not a day, later I cannot move my little finger back to its normal position and it curls up if I try and move it. I'm guessing that I've been resting on a nerve or something, just wondered if anyone had suffered something similar and what to do to fix? I do try and change hand positions ... Basically, what Simon said. There are some specific things you can try. Specialized make a bar tape called Bar Phat that's supposed to help with this problem. There are also Marsas pads that go underneath ordinary tape, and some Audax riders have said positive things about this. Specialized (again) also make gloves with gel pads that are meant to relieve pressure on the ulnar nerves. I bought a pair of these recently and have found them to be very good. Is there numbness or tingling in the affected hand? With the sort of nerve damage cyclists commonly get with stepping up the mileage I'd expect that. If so this ought gradually to repair itself in a number of weeks or months once you remove the cause. On the other hand, as you say only one little finger is affected this sounds a little bit like trigger finger to me. This is a condition of the tendon rather than the nerve. I'm not an ex-medical student though and I think we could do with a comment from Helen at this point. -- Dave... |
#4
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Funny Fingers
You have a problem with the ulnar nerve. Your picture is remarkably
similar to those of ulnar nerve palsy in some of my books [1] This runs in the heel of the hand close to the bony lump you can feel by the ray bone that goes to the little finger (hook of the hamate). The nature of ulnar nerve damage is that it is possible to damage the motor branch without affecting sensory function. It follows that numbness/pins & needles are not always a feature. If you can't grip a postcard between your ring and little finger, you almost deinitely are in trouble; if you can't bring these together at all, you *are* in trouble. The ulnar nerve also supplies some other hand muscles, including those to the thumb; can you squeeze a 'cord grip' type spring toggle without bending your thumb in the middle? IMO the problem is due to compression of the nerve and its bloood vessels, not to vibration. You should take _all_ pressure off the heel of the hand as frequently as possible when cycling. Padded gloves and bars help diffuse the pressure but do not remove it. (I speculate that they may cause more trouble in the long term for this reason; you'd take your hands off the bars if you had pain, but if you have no pain, you might continue until you have truly mashed the nerve.) The same may apply to other contact area problems, like saddles/shorts. I first mashed my left ulnar nerve when I cycled to the Arctic Circle in 1988. By the time I realised I had a problem, I was 10 days into a three-week trip, cycle-camping solo. There was no pain or numbness. I changed my cycling style but still returned home with little motor function. My subsequent Audax exploits caused the problem to recur; I have permanent damage... I suspect this problem affects the left hand of right-handed people more because it has developed quite severely before being noticed and the right hand gets taken off the bars more for gears and braking. [1] Ulnar nerve palsy is a medical exam 'classic'. If you have any friends taking exams, show them your hand as a revision challenge. -- Helen D. Vecht: Edgware. |
#5
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Funny Fingers
Helen Deborah Vecht wrote:
You have a problem with the ulnar nerve. Your picture is remarkably similar to those of ulnar nerve palsy in some of my books [1] This runs in the heel of the hand close to the bony lump you can feel by the ray bone that goes to the little finger (hook of the hamate). The nature of ulnar nerve damage is that it is possible to damage the motor branch without affecting sensory function. It follows that numbness/pins & needles are not always a feature. This is not an attempt to frighten you (see below*) but the last time I had a "trapped ulnar nerve" it turned out to be a brain tumour. If it gets much worse, or if you start getting uncommanded hand twitches, then you really do need some checking over. *however, given that there is a more obvious cause in your case (lots of riding) I am sure that it will go away if you get the bar tape, riding position right. Good luck with the etape. Peter -- www.amey.org.uk |
#6
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Funny Fingers
Helen Deborah Vecht wrote:
IMO the problem is due to compression of the nerve and its bloood vessels, not to vibration. You should take _all_ pressure off the heel of the hand as frequently as possible when cycling. Padded gloves and bars help diffuse the pressure but do not remove it. (I speculate that they may cause more trouble in the long term for this reason; you'd take your hands off the bars if you had pain, but if you have no pain, you might continue until you have truly mashed the nerve.) The same may apply to other contact area problems, like saddles/shorts. I think bars do make a genuine difference. My wrist position for drop bars is totally different than it is for flat bars. Wrist straight, arms bent very little pressure/compression. My symptoms are different to yours in that I experience numbness not motor problems but for me the symptoms really do disappear totally with drop bars and this is based on years of experience. Unfortunately I've never managed to totally solve the saddle/short problem. I first mashed my left ulnar nerve when I cycled to the Arctic Circle in 1988. By the time I realised I had a problem, I was 10 days into a three-week trip, cycle-camping solo. There was no pain or numbness. I changed my cycling style but still returned home with little motor function. My subsequent Audax exploits caused the problem to recur; I have permanent damage... I suspect this problem affects the left hand of right-handed people more because it has developed quite severely before being noticed and the right hand gets taken off the bars more for gears and braking. [1] Ulnar nerve palsy is a medical exam 'classic'. If you have any friends taking exams, show them your hand as a revision challenge. Given that it is an exam classic it is a shame doctors seem unable to remember it in the surgery. ( |
#7
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Funny Fingers
Nick typed
Helen Deborah Vecht wrote: IMO the problem is due to compression of the nerve and its bloood vessels, not to vibration. You should take _all_ pressure off the heel of the hand as frequently as possible when cycling. Padded gloves and bars help diffuse the pressure but do not remove it. (I speculate that they may cause more trouble in the long term for this reason; you'd take your hands off the bars if you had pain, but if you have no pain, you might continue until you have truly mashed the nerve.) The same may apply to other contact area problems, like saddles/shorts. I think bars do make a genuine difference. My wrist position for drop bars is totally different than it is for flat bars. Wrist straight, arms bent very little pressure/compression. My symptoms are different to yours in that I experience numbness not motor problems but for me the symptoms really do disappear totally with drop bars and this is based on years of experience. In 1988, I was riding a flat-barred mountain bike. I wore gloves but hadn't yet acquired the Speco gel gloves I used for Audax rides. I had well-padded drops for Audax. Unfortunately I've never managed to totally solve the saddle/short problem. For me the key was getting my bum off the seat and allowing as much air as possible to cool my shorts. I reserved padding for trips 100 miles. ('Airing my grievances' took on a new meaning...) I first mashed my left ulnar nerve when I cycled to the Arctic Circle in 1988. By the time I realised I had a problem, I was 10 days into a three-week trip, cycle-camping solo. There was no pain or numbness. I changed my cycling style but still returned home with little motor function. My subsequent Audax exploits caused the problem to recur; I have permanent damage... [1] Ulnar nerve palsy is a medical exam 'classic'. If you have any friends taking exams, show them your hand as a revision challenge. Given that it is an exam classic it is a shame doctors seem unable to remember it in the surgery. ( It is a favourite for MRCP, a test rarely taken by GPs... The ulnar nerve features in a large number of glove adverts on the wiggle website ;-) Quick guide to nerves in the hand: 1) Radial nerve: winds round the back of the radius as it broadens just above the wrist. Supplies sensation only to a small triangular patch at the back of the base of the thumb. Unlikely to be troublesome in cyclists who neither wear HYOOGE watches or get into trouble with the Polis [1] 2) Median nerve arrives in the hand in a tight fibrous tunnel, the carpal tunnel, in the middle of the wrist (under the base of the 'Life Line'). Supplies sensation to most of the fingers, except usually half the ring finger and little finger. Supplies muscle at base of thumb. [2] 3) Ulnar nerve as discussed above. Has separate motor and sensory branches. Supplies sensation to the little finger and usually half the ring finger. Motor branch supplies almost ALL small muscles of the hand. These are the ones that allow you to spread straight fingers apart and bring them together (interossei). They also allow you to fully straighten the fingers (lumbricals).[3] [1] Resisting tight handcuffs classically causes numbness discovered after a weekend's revelling; challenging sufferers about Polis encounters can be 'interesting'... [2] Carpal tunnel syndrome is caused by compression of the median nerve, usually in condition where a degree of swelling increases tension in a tight place. Pregnancy, rheumatoid arthritis etc can be examples. A minor operation to decompress the tunnel may be recommended. [3] The curved appearance of the OP's little finger is termed 'ulnar clawing'. -- Helen D. Vecht: Edgware. |
#8
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Funny Fingers
in message , Helen Deborah Vecht
') wrote: [1] Resisting tight handcuffs classically causes numbness discovered after a weekend's revelling; challenging sufferers about Polis encounters can be 'interesting'... It is, of course, not /only/ the Police who may make use of handcuffs in the course of a weekend's revelling... -- (Simon Brooke) http://www.jasmine.org.uk/~simon/ ;; All in all you're just another nick in the ball -- Think Droid |
#9
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Funny Fingers
Helen Deborah Vecht wrote:
Nick typed Helen Deborah Vecht wrote: IMO the problem is due to compression of the nerve and its bloood vessels, not to vibration. You should take _all_ pressure off the heel of the hand as frequently as possible when cycling. Padded gloves and bars help diffuse the pressure but do not remove it. (I speculate that they may cause more trouble in the long term for this reason; you'd take your hands off the bars if you had pain, but if you have no pain, you might continue until you have truly mashed the nerve.) The same may apply to other contact area problems, like saddles/shorts. I think bars do make a genuine difference. My wrist position for drop bars is totally different than it is for flat bars. Wrist straight, arms bent very little pressure/compression. My symptoms are different to yours in that I experience numbness not motor problems but for me the symptoms really do disappear totally with drop bars and this is based on years of experience. In 1988, I was riding a flat-barred mountain bike. I wore gloves but hadn't yet acquired the Speco gel gloves I used for Audax rides. Strangely gloves appear to make very little difference to me. I had well-padded drops for Audax. Unfortunately I've never managed to totally solve the saddle/short problem. For me the key was getting my bum off the seat and allowing as much air as possible to cool my shorts. I reserved padding for trips 100 miles. ('Airing my grievances' took on a new meaning...) For me it is the nappy like padding that they put in cycling shorts that causes problems. [3] The curved appearance of the OP's little finger is termed 'ulnar clawing'. Actually the the OP's little finger looks positively normal and straight compared to mine. My pinkies really are bent but that is the bones. Top joints about 20% angle off straight, curving inwards in the plane of the hand). It is hereditary, not a problem but it always gives the doctor a shock ;o) |
#10
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Funny Fingers
Nick typed
In 1988, I was riding a flat-barred mountain bike. I wore gloves but hadn't yet acquired the Spenco gel gloves I used for Audax rides. Strangely gloves appear to make very little difference to me. Is that strange, given that they don't remove pressure, just spread it out? Poorly designed gloves can quite easily concentrate pressure in *just* the areas you want to protect. I had well-padded drops for Audax. Unfortunately I've never managed to totally solve the saddle/short problem. For me the key was getting my bum off the seat and allowing as much air as possible to cool my shorts. I reserved padding for trips 100 miles. ('Airing my grievances' took on a new meaning...) For me it is the nappy like padding that they put in cycling shorts that causes problems. It quite possibly does this to others too... -- Helen D. Vecht: Edgware. |
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