Exercise after tendon surgery

This is an automatically translated article.

Tendons are an essential part of the movement apparatus, easily damaged and difficult to recover. Due to the characteristics of tendons that are divided into fibers, there are very few blood vessels to nourish them, so tendons are easy to necrosis. If the tendon becomes inflamed, there is a risk of it becoming sticky and difficult to move. Therefore, exercise exercise after tendon surgery is necessary and imperative to restore movement after tendon surgery.

1. Why is it important to exercise after tendon surgery?

Tendons to function need the lubrication of mucus in the tendon sheath, if the tendon sheath is inflamed, the tendon will become inflamed and sticky and difficult to move. Therefore, areas with many tendons after tendon surgery will have sequelae such as; hand is constricted or stiffened. To be able to move like the original, exercise and movement after tendon surgery is extremely necessary.
However, movement after tendon surgery is not easy. If you perform the exercise too early, it will cause the tendon suture to tear and damage the joint, and if you practice it too late, it will cause ankylosing spondylitis and difficult to recover.

2. Mobility exercises after tendon surgery in the hand

Hands are the part that is most involved in human activities. To increase strength, after hand tendon surgery, the patient needs to perform appropriate exercises, depending on which tendon is affected, which area is orthopedic surgery.
2.1 Mobility exercises after tendon surgery in the hand After surgery on the tendon of the hand, the two most common sequelae are spasm of the hand and difficulty when the hand is extended.
2.1.1 Hand cramp Hand spasm is a condition in which the fingers are bent, closed and very difficult to open.
With a constricted hand form, you will need to perform the elastic band snapping exercise.
Elastic band snap exercise: Place several elastic bands on a flat surface, for example the floor. Mark two lines about 1m apart. The patient will use his hands, snap the elastic bands so that they bounce forward, perform the flick with all 5 fingers. From one line to the other. The snapping of the elastic band will help the tendons gradually stretch, preventing spasms.
Perform twice a day, once in the morning, once in the afternoon. About 30 minutes each time.
2.1.2 Arms and fingers are stiff and difficult to flex. With arms outstretched, it can be applied with a ball squeeze exercise.
Squeeze exercise: This exercise is the opposite of snapping an elastic band, the patient puts in the palm of his hand a rubber ball stimulated by a billiard ball. Then gently squeeze the ball in to hold it.
Perform twice a day, once in the morning, once in the afternoon. About 30 minutes each time.
2.2 Mobility exercises after tendon surgery in the forearm supraspinatus muscle The forearm supraspinatus muscle is located in the back of the arm, they are responsible for supporting the forearm and hand. The tendon in the forearm supraspinatus is located at the wrist and partly at the elbow.
Mobility exercises after tendon surgery in the forearm scapula to avoid tendon stiffness include: Hand supine and club back rotation.

2.2.1 Forearm supine exercise Hand supine is the simplest exercise, but this is the initial movement to perform other exercises.
How to do it:
The patient sits with his back straight, his body perpendicular to his thighs, his knees straight. Arms are in line with the body, forearms and elbows are perpendicular to the arms. Palms and fingers facing down. Let your neck and fingers relax. Slowly raise your forearm so that your hand and fingers are facing up. Then return the hand facing down. Patients need to do this exercise 2 hours a day, 1 hour in the morning and afternoon. Practice for 4 minutes, then rest for 1 minute. It's very difficult to practice at first, so you should only do half of it, gradually get used to it, and do it completely. Exercise hand flexor muscles to help stabilize tendons and smooth tendons.
2.2.2 Wood Backward Practice Method Use a straight wooden stick. The stick has a length of about 80cm, a diameter of 4cm. Divide the wooden stick into two equal parts. divide and mark into 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30cm.
Hold the stick at the 30cm mark, this is the closest to the middle, hold the stick in the upper part so that the wooden stick is straight, the lower part will be longer than the upper part. The goal is to create more weight at the bottom. Note that when holding the cane, the patient should stand upright, walk comfortably, hands in a perpendicular elbow position, forearms facing forward. Turn the stick upside down so that the lower end is tilted upwards, reaching a horizontal position. Performing the supine-grip exercise will help strengthen the forearm supraspinatus.
2.2.3 Mobility exercises after tendon surgery in the forearm proximal muscle The forearm proximal muscle is located in the forearm, in which the abdominal part is responsible for performing the pronation of the hand and forearm. The stomach muscles will be located in the abdomen, this arm area has white skin.
Mobility exercises similar to post-surgery post-surgery exercises in the forearm supraspinatus. Do the exercise from light to heavy: pronation with the hand and the side of the cane.
Handstands are the lightest initial exercise for smooth recovery before moving on to heavier sets.
How to do it:
The patient sits with his back straight, his body perpendicular to his thighs, his knees straight. Arms are in line with the body, forearms and elbows are perpendicular to the arms. Palms and fingers facing up. Let your neck and fingers relax. Proceed to forearm prostrate, so that the hand moves from the supine position to the hand-down position. Then turn the hand upside down, then face down again. Patients need to do this exercise 2 hours a day, 1 hour in the morning and afternoon. Practice for 4 minutes, then rest for 1 minute. At first, it's very difficult to practice, so you should only do half of the belly, gradually get used to it, and gradually do it completely. Exercise hand flexor muscles to help stabilize tendons and smooth tendons.
Trunks help restore the strength of the proximal muscles. The exercise is similar to the exercise in the back muscles.
Proceed to gently turn the club upside down, tossing the bottom end of the club up and out, until the wood is horizontal. Then return the club to its original upright position. Performing two movements: turning the club upside down and returning to the original position counts as 1 practice.
Practice twice a day, morning and afternoon. Each session consists of 10-15 repetitions, the sessions are rested for 5-7 minutes to allow the epidemic to regenerate. This exercise will help increase muscle strength. After doing the easy 30s grasp, gradually increase the exercise by grabbing the higher, 20, 15, 10 and 5cm segments. Practice until the prostrate hand is proficient with few obstacles.
Rehabilitation after tendon surgery plays a very important role in later movement. Therefore, to prevent loss of mobility, after tendon surgery, it is necessary to choose the right exercises for each stage and practice as soon as possible.

The Department of Rehabilitation of Vinmec International General Hospital is a special specialty with therapeutic functions using both traditional medical methods and advanced technology. At Vinmec, there is a team of qualified and experienced doctors and nurses combined with a system of leading modern equipment in the country such as: the application of a closed chain of gyms from gross to fine movement for the individual. Rehabilitation of movement, activities and exercise of hand function. Owning a system of machines, training beds, high-class specialized tools. Own the ERAS treatment and care method - the method of patient care before, during and after surgery with the participation of many specialties in the hospital. From there, effectively support the patient to restore the functions, motor capacity and psychological awareness inherent, lost, impaired or latent of the body; help patients recover soon after surgery.

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