When your hands are healthy and strong, it’s easy to take them for granted. An injury or impairment of the hands can limit your life dramatically, but finding a great hand surgeon can set things right. Where should you begin your search for the ideal hand surgeon—and what qualities should you look for?
NJ happens to be a great place to begin your search for a superior hand surgeon. Here on the East Coast, we have some of the best medical schools in the nation, and many great surgeons, including hand surgeons, stay in the area to develop and maintain their surgery practices throughout their careers. Today we’ll provide some insight to guide your search for the best hand surgeons in NJ.
The Role of Your Hand Surgeon
Hand surgeons specialize in caring for one of the most intricate structures in the human body. The anatomy of the hand, of course, is an integral part of what makes us human. This anatomy is so complex, and the function of the hand is so important to daily life.
That’s why your choice of a top hand surgeon is paramount. Hand surgeons are tasked with repairing and improving the mechanical aspects of the hand along with the sensory and motor capabilities as well.
Hand surgery involves manipulating a very complicated set of bodily tissues and bones. To illustrate the complexity of hand surgery, here are just some examples of surgical treatment methods NJ hand surgeons may use on the various structures of the hand and fingers.
Hand/finger tendon surgery
Mechanically, the hands and fingers operate similarly to ropes and pulleys. Your tendons can be compared to ropes that glide through pulleys (the tendon sheath), which hold the tendons close to your finger bones.
The graceful gliding is made possible by a moist lining that allows the tendons to move easily through the sheath, so that your fingers bend and flex smoothly. Many hand surgeries involve creating additional space in the sheath so that the tendons move easily without “catching” and making finger movements jerky. (Trigger finger is an example of a condition where fingers “catch” or get stuck when finger movement is attempted.)
Another common tendon surgery involves repairing tendons torn or damaged due to disease or injury. In this type of hand surgery, the tendon is stitched back together or a graft is taken from another area of the body to repair the tendon.
Finger/thumb bone and joint surgery
Each finger has 3 bones (phalanges), while the thumb has 2, with joints connecting them to one another and to the 5 bones (metacarpals) of the palm at the base of each finger.
The metacarpals connect to the wrist, which is made up of 8 very small carpal bones. Hand surgeons in NJ often reshape bones of an arthritic thumb, for example, to relieve pressure on nearby joints. In other cases, your surgeon might treat thumb arthritis by actually reconstructing your thumb joint.
The surgeon might remove part of the arthritic joint and use a nearby tendon as a cushion for the joint and to restore stability to the area.
Surgery to repair or relieve pressure on nerves of the hand
Nerves can become damaged in numerous ways and cause loss of sensation, numbness or tingling in the hand and fingers. Three nerves (radial, ulnar and median) serve to activate motor and sensory functions of the muscles and skin of the hand and fingers.
Hand surgery may be needed if nerves are damaged or cut in an accident/injury. Another common way that nerves can be damaged is due to pressure and crowding from scar tissue formation, for example.
In the latter case, your NJ hand specialist may operate to remove scar tissue and relieve pressure on the sensitive nerve(s), working carefully to avoid damaging the nerves and ensuring that proper vascularization (blood supply) is maintained.
It’s delicate and precise work, that’s why we suggest you trust your hands only to an expert hand surgeon in NJ.
Why Choose Cohen/Winters for Hand Surgery in NJ?
The Bergen County practice of Cohen/Winters Aesthetic & Reconstructive Surgery is dedicated to patient centered care in hand surgery. We feel that this commitment sets us apart from the group of top plastic and reconstructive surgeons in the area.
We consider our work to be a true calling, not just a career or a business. We enjoy meeting with patients and planning your care around the goals you have for your life and health. We find it extremely rewarding to help patients improve their lives by improving their body function and appearance.
Let Us Help You Reach Your Goals
Our hand surgery patients come to us with a variety of unique needs. Many patients are seeking relief from chronic pain in their hands and fingers. Others need to restore feeling to their hands and banish numbness or pins and needles. Still others need to restore their range of motion to advance their careers or participate once again in sports or creative pursuits that they enjoy.
Some patients just want to make their daily lives easier with stronger, better functioning hands. At Cohen/Winters, we will create an individualized plan to meet your needs. If surgery is the best solution for your hand problem, we will partner with you to ensure your procedure and recovery are completely successful.
Learn About Your Best Options for Hand Surgery in Bergen County
We’re ready to help you examine the possibilities. At Cohen/Winters, we first work with you to determine if surgery will benefit your condition by examining your hands and learning about your treatment history and symptoms.
We will offer you options and expert medical advice on the most appropriate hand surgery solutions to restore your hands to the best possible condition. We always take time to answer your questions so that you are completely prepared to go forward with successful hand surgery and a speedy recovery.
To ensure that you receive the highest level of care, and that your consultations and treatment are never rushed or delayed, we have added a new hand specialist to our practice. We are so happy that Harvard-trained hand surgeon, Dr. Janet Yueh, has recently joined us.
Dr. Yueh is a well-rounded hand surgeon with training in general surgery and plastic surgery, and she shares our commitment to stellar patient care. If your hands are standing in the way of your best life, we urge you to contact us for a consultation to learn about your options for hand surgery.
