Skiers Thumb Injury
When skiing, there is a special type of thumb injury that can occur. This skiers thumb injury happens when a person falls while the wrist is attached to the ski pole. It is a common instinct to release the pole to extend the hand in order to try to break the fall. This causes the thumb to be overextended to the side when falling, causing it to break the ligaments in the thumb. The skiers thumb injury basically prevents a person from being able to grip and pinch because of the torn ligaments. It requires specialized treatment because it is not a normal type of sprain. It is important to get treatment as soon as possible when a person has skiers thumb injury because it will only get worse in time.
This injury is usually caused by falling during skiing. When a person falls, he or she has an instinct to open up his or her hand to help break the fall. This causes the thumb to be extended during the fall, where it catches on the ski pole. At the moment of impact, the thumb's ligaments will tear due to the pole. This is what a skiers thumb injury is, a torn ligament in the thumb caused by the skiing pole.
This type of injury is usually treated depending on the type of torn ligament. If the ligament is not torn all the way, then wearing a brace for four to six weeks will be needed. If the skiers thumb injury is more serious, like a completely torn ligament, then four to six weeks of wearing a cast may be required. Most of the time, a completely torn ligament will require surgery to treat, but it has an extremely high success rate with little to no side effects after the treatment.
The best way to help out a skiers thumb injury is to get treatment as early as possible. It is caused by when a skier falls down and breaks the ligaments in his or her thumb on the skier pole. It may seem like a normal sprain, but it is actually more serious. The type of torn ligament will determine the type of treatment. Usually a brace will be used for a partially torn ligament, but a cast or surgery is required for a completely torn ligament. Of course the best way to prevent this injury is to not fall in the first place.