After undergoing hand surgery, it is vital to prioritize healing and rehabilitation to ensure a full and successful recovery. Let's explore important strategies and tips for postoperative hand care that will help you regain optimal function.
Adhere to Your Physician's Instructions: Following surgery, your surgeon will help guide you in postoperative care, likely advising you to keep your hand elevated and your wound compressed to decrease inflammation and encourage swelling. Always follow the instructions of your surgeon to obtain optimal surgical results.
Manage Your Pain: Pain following hand surgery is expected, but that doesn’t mean you can’t manage it. Your doctor will likely prescribe pain medication which should be taken regularly along with regularly icing the surgical site to reduce your pain.
Start Mobilizing Now: Following surgery, your hand will feel weak and stiff, so starting to mobilize your hand early will help you along your recovery. Your physician will likely advise certain low-impact and targeted hand motion exercises to help you regain flexibility gradually.
Regularly Attend Physical Therapy: Physical therapy is an excellent way to progress your recovery under the guidance of a professional. Your hand therapist will help guide you in hand exercises and other practices to encourage healing and help regain functionality.
Stay Healthy and Hydrated: It is important to stay healthy while recovering as your body's working overtime to heal your surgical site. Eating nutritious meals and staying hydrated is key to an easier and quicker recovery. Making lifestyle changes, such as refraining from smoking and excessive alcohol consumption will help your body heal.
Gradually Return to Normal: During recovery from hand surgery, it is important to listen to your body and make a gradual return to normal. Avoid overusing and straining your hand early on in recovery. And maybe even consider occupational therapy to help guide you back to a normal routine on a proper timeline.
Embracing postoperative care for hand surgery demands patience, commitment, and a thorough grasp of the rehabilitation journey. By adhering to these straightforward postoperative strategies, your path to recovery from hand surgery becomes more manageable than ever.
AUTHOR: Jason Shrouder-Henry MD, MBA is a Board Certified and fellowship-trained orthopedic surgeon specializing in the hand, wrist, elbow and shoulder throughout Chicagoland.