trigger finger

[dksbook]

Anybody have any moderate-to-serious problem with "trigger finger",
which seems to be the fencing equivalent to football's "turf toe"?
The fencer in our family has that condition, and it seems to be
affecting strength in the weapon hand. Treatment so far has consisted
of steroid injection in the affected area (low on ring finger, near
the palm), Bextra, ice and bead-rattling and candle lighting. What
about the surgery option? Any experience out there?

[Holly E. Ordway]

Post by dksbook
Anybody have any moderate-to-serious problem with "trigger finger",
which seems to be the fencing equivalent to football's "turf toe"?
The fencer in our family has that condition, and it seems to be
affecting strength in the weapon hand. Treatment so far has consisted
of steroid injection in the affected area (low on ring finger, near
the palm), Bextra, ice and bead-rattling and candle lighting. What
about the surgery option? Any experience out there?

I've never heard of either trigger finger or turf toe. Can you explain
in more detail what the problem is? What weapon does the fencer use, and
what style of grip?

--Holly

[Harold Buck]

Post by Holly E. Ordway
I've never heard of either trigger finger or turf toe. Can you explain
in more detail what the problem is? What weapon does the fencer use, and
what style of grip?

I'm guessing you don't read a lot of NFL injury reports :-)

Turf toe, I believe, is a hyperextention of the big toe, which is common
to football players playing on artificial turf because the turf is soft.
I have no idea what trigger finger is.

--Harold Buck


"I used to rock and roll all night,
and party every day.
Then it was every other day. . . ."
-Homer J. Simpson

[ObeeKris]

Post by Harold Buck
I have no idea what trigger finger is.

Itchy.

Chris "ObeeKris" Lisy

[CGrench]

Trigger finger in fencing usually comes from gripping the sword too tightly.
The rubbing of the tendon of finger on the grip causes inflammation, which
causes the cyst to form. It is an overuse injury. It is not seen as much with
the saber grip. The pistol (?) grip is the one I have seen it with. Padding
the grip where the trouble is, or changing to another grip, like the saber one,
is recommended. If you are using a pistol grip, and want to continue, try
changing to a ZII grip. You can also try wearing a weightlifter's glove to pad
the fingers a little more. The surgery will take care of the current trigger
(cyst), and may be necessary, but taking the pressure off it can sometimes make
it go away, too. And you should fix the cause, so another one doesn't form.

[dksbook]

Post by CGrench
Trigger finger in fencing usually comes from gripping the sword too tightly.
The rubbing of the tendon of finger on the grip causes inflammation, which
causes the cyst to form. It is an overuse injury. It is not seen as much with
the saber grip. The pistol (?) grip is the one I have seen it with. Padding
the grip where the trouble is, or changing to another grip, like the saber one,
is recommended. If you are using a pistol grip, and want to continue, try
changing to a ZII grip. You can also try wearing a weightlifter's glove to pad
the fingers a little more. The surgery will take care of the current trigger
(cyst), and may be necessary, but taking the pressure off it can sometimes make
it go away, too. And you should fix the cause, so another one doesn't form.

This is very helpful info, I think. Now to begin breaking a bad habit...

[Chris Cooke]

Post by dksbook
Anybody have any moderate-to-serious problem with "trigger finger",
which seems to be the fencing equivalent to football's "turf toe"?
The fencer in our family has that condition, and it seems to be
affecting strength in the weapon hand. Treatment so far has consisted
of steroid injection in the affected area (low on ring finger, near
the palm), Bextra, ice and bead-rattling and candle lighting. What
about the surgery option? Any experience out there?

My mother had this, she isnt a fencer (well she tried it for a few weeks
but that has nothing to do with it) she found that the injection didn't
help in the long term. She then went on to have the surgery option, apperently
they snip a bit of tissue around the offending tendon. Her hand was out
for a few weeks, but is now fine. Im sure she would recomend it to anyone.
But as with all these things it depends on the people you see.

[Holly E. Ordway]

I haven't had any experience with anything as severe as what's
described, but based on more mundane pain and blistering, I'd definitely
suggest trying out some different grips. My main weapon is sabre, so no
problems there, but I also fence foil, and I've discovered a huge
comfort difference in the different pistol grip styles. With the right
grip, I feel like my arm is just plugged into my foil as if it were part
of it; with the wrong grip, I can end up with my hand in severe pain
after a few bouts.

It's not always particularly obvious - I'm partial to Belgian grips, but
I discovered that even among Belgians there are differences, even apart
from the obvious sizing difference: things like the angle of the little
prongs that stick out, or the shape of the part that the hand rests on.
Some experimenting with different grips is probably in order.

--Holly

[Vince Dicarlo]

I had a similar problem when I changed to epee and had problems
with my forefinger. I changed to a Visconti grip, and the problem
went away. I sounds like you need to experiment with different
grips.

Vince DC

Post by dksbook
Anybody have any moderate-to-serious problem with "trigger finger",
which seems to be the fencing equivalent to football's "turf toe"?
The fencer in our family has that condition, and it seems to be
affecting strength in the weapon hand. Treatment so far has consisted
of steroid injection in the affected area (low on ring finger, near
the palm), Bextra, ice and bead-rattling and candle lighting. What
about the surgery option? Any experience out there?

[Laura Callaghan]

I had a problem with the middle joint of my middle finger after a while
training with a pistol grip, the result being that sometimes I would wake up
and find it locked in a clenched position, and be unable to straighten it
for some minutes. Obviously this was a bit disturbing: has anyone else come
across this problem?

[Harold Buck]

Post by Laura Callaghan
I had a problem with the middle joint of my middle finger after a while
training with a pistol grip, the result being that sometimes I would wake up
and find it locked in a clenched position, and be unable to straighten it
for some minutes. Obviously this was a bit disturbing: has anyone else come
across this problem?

No, but it wold make driving a bitch if the people near you drive like
the people near me!

--Harold Buck


"I used to rock and roll all night,
and party every day.
Then it was every other day. . . ."
-Homer J. Simpson

[dksbook]

Post by Laura Callaghan
I had a problem with the middle joint of my middle finger after a while
training with a pistol grip, the result being that sometimes I would wake up
and find it locked in a clenched position, and be unable to straighten it
for some minutes. Obviously this was a bit disturbing: has anyone else come
across this problem?

Well, we changed from a medium Uhlmann pistol grip to a large, it may
help, too soon to tell. I am interested in the fact that this is not
a totally unknown condition in fencers. Anybody really experienced
with grips out there have any idea which other grips to try for a
lefthanded fencer who has this condition at the base of the ring
finger?

It was also good to hear that the surgery is relatively minor and has
a quick recovery. Thanks for that note.

I appreciate all the feedback. There is a lot of experience in this
group.

[Andrew John]

I think I have had this problem.
I was told by the surgeon prior to the operation that it was low risk,
the main one being cutting of nerves ( fingers have lots!).

If I remember correctly the lump/cyst is tendon lubricating material
that has leaked out of the sheath, wheras the clicking/catching is the
inflamed tendon catching on the sheath.
Removal takes place under local / arm block anaesthetic, and leaves
a small V shaped scar. Recovery was complete for me after a couple of
weeks.

I changed pistol grips after the surgery too, to ones that
are more curved, without strange bits sticking between
the fingers.

The problem has not re occured in the two years since, so I'm
inclined to think it was holding a badly fitting grip too tight.

For peace of mind alone, it is worth getting a referal to an orthopaedic
hand surgeon ( yup the field is that specialised ! )

Regards
AJ

Post by dksbook
Anybody have any moderate-to-serious problem with "trigger finger",
which seems to be the fencing equivalent to football's "turf toe"?
The fencer in our family has that condition, and it seems to be
affecting strength in the weapon hand. Treatment so far has consisted
of steroid injection in the affected area (low on ring finger, near
the palm), Bextra, ice and bead-rattling and candle lighting. What
about the surgery option? Any experience out there?