What should you know about high five hand therapy?

A hand therapist assesses how your fingers, thumb, wrist, and forearm move, then matches treatment to the problem. Sessions may include exercises for flexibility and grip, scar or swelling care, splinting, activity practice, and advice on protecting healing tissues. The aim is not simply to make the hand stronger; it is to help you use it for tasks such as dressing, writing, cooking, work, or sport.

Hand therapy may support recovery after a wrist fracture or operation, and may also help with conditions such as De Quervain's Tenosynovitis, Hand Osteoarthritis, Rheumatoid Arthritis, or Dupuytren's Contracture. The plan changes as pain, movement, and tolerance change.

Bring details of the activities that are difficult, including gripping, pinching, typing, or lifting. Follow the home programme at the dose advised; doing extra repetitions can irritate healing tissues. Use a splint only as instructed, keep follow-up appointments, and report increasing swelling, numbness, skin changes, or a sudden loss of movement. After some operations, hand therapy works alongside surgical aftercare, such as recovery following Carpal Tunnel Release or Dupuytren's Surgery.

Seek prompt medical advice after an injury if the finger or wrist looks deformed, becomes unusually pale or blue, feels cold, or cannot move. Urgent assessment is also sensible for rapidly worsening pain, spreading redness, fever, or new persistent numbness. These signs can require examination before exercises or splint changes are continued.

Ask which movements are safe now, how often to practise them, whether a splint is needed, what level of soreness is expected, and which work or household tasks should be modified. You can also ask how progress will be measured and when hand therapy should be reviewed.