Broken finger...

[KG Diver]

So, a couple of days ago I slammed my middle finger with my truck door and,surprise, it's broken.

There is a radial fracture between first and 2nd knuckle. It's now splinter and I've been icing it for 15 min at a time every 2 hours and taking ibuprofen as instructed by my general practitioner. I will be seeing my ortho guy next week.

The problem is that we have a dive trip planned for this weekend. Here is my question : is diving going to exacerbate the problem or inhibit the healing process? Not really sure how pressure would effect it (max depth approx 40ft).

Any suggestions? Am I hosed?

Visuals:

 

[Altamira]

I got a radial fracture on my ring finger three weeks before a trip on the Paul Gauguin, and it resulted in me having to cancel the trip. Mine looked like yours only it was on the first joint past the hand and required surgery to fix the break. They inserted two pins through the joint and a screw going laterally through the bone, and then another surgery six weeks later to remove the pins. When I asked my Orthopod about diving, he said not only no, but hell no. Even if he did not have to perform surgery to repair the break, he told me diving, dealing with tanks, weights, climbing ladders, increased risk of infection, etc., was too much of a risk to the finger. Perhaps your break is not as bad, or your Ortho guy will be more liberal, and I wish you the very best of luck. From my experience dealing with a broken finger, I would highly recommend putting off the dive trip for another time when you are healed. With my broken finger, I could not have climbed a dive ladder, and might have had a real problem trying to get out of the water on a shore dive.

 

[Duke Dive Medicine]

KG,

For what you're planning, the underwater (i.e. pressure, on-gassing) part of diving won't make the fracture worse, but it may be better to sit this one out. I don't read x-rays for a living, but it looks like that fracture enters the area of the joint. That finger needs to be completely immobilized. I'd echo what Altamira said above - of concern is your ability to handle your gear, get yourself into and out of the water, and function in an emergency, not to mention the possibility of further trauma if a tank or weight falls on it.

Best regards,
DDM

 

[JamesBon92007]

I've found that a small splint on the top of the finger over the two end digits (in my case) held on with electrical tape holds up in the water and still allows me to use my hand without stressing anything. I was able to climb the boat ladder still wearing everything but my fins.

 

[Altamira]

No matter what my experience was, or anyone else's experiences were, your Orthopedic Surgeon is going to be the authority on what he thinks is the best treatment and care for your specific break. In my case, my entire wrist and hand, except for the thumb and forefinger, were immobilized in a physical therapist fabricated cast. Other divers like JamesBon92007 obviously had a different experience. All finger breaks are not created equal, and should be dealt with the best advice of your Orthopedic doctor. I would also pay attention to what Duke Dive Medicine told you, and it would not hurt you to contact DAN as well to get their input.

 

[KG Diver]

Thank you guys for all of the replies. I was actually able to get an earlier appointment (tomorrow) with a hand specialist; suppose he will have the final say. In the meantime, it is good to know that diving (pressure/ingassing) shouldn't have any effect on the healing procesd; as I'm not sure how much diving knowledge this doctor has.

I am hoping that since it's going to be a shore dive in warm water (no wetsuit) I could still do the dive, however, as I mentioned earlier I will yield to whatever the doc says as I have a big week long dive trip planed in November which I do not want to cancel.

Also, short video of the finger and mobility while splinted. Funny part is, there was never any pain, aside from the initial impact; after which I just pulled on the finger to put it back in its place. *knock on wood*

 

[Doctorfish]

Warm shallow water. I personally would go diving.

 

[KG Diver]

Warm shallow water. I personally would go diving.

After talking to my ortho and him okaying the dive, as long as I kept the finger splinted, I ended up going. Two weekends in a row actually; 9 dives in total. I have my follow-up middle of next week, will see how it's healing. Hopefully a couple more weeks with a splint and it should be good.

About the only crappy part about the whole dive was that my newly-purchased Atomic Z2 (1st stage) was making such a mind-piercing whistle when inhaling below 20ft, that I had to switch out to another reg. Other than that, all was good. Also learned that while purging to simulate free flow (while working on skills), the Z2 free flows much more violently than the rental Aries.

 

[Altamira]

That is great. It sounds like your break was not as bad as mine and did not need surgery. I am glad you did not have to cancel your dives.