Author: Raymond O'Bryan, DO
Co Author #1: Gregory Seelhoefer, MD
Senior Editor: Jessalynn Adam, MD
Editor: Siobhan Statuta, MD, FAMSSM
Patient Presentation:
17 year-old male presented to an outpatient sports medicine clinic with complaints of left dorsal lateral wrist pain
History:
17 year-old male presented to an outpatient sports medicine clinic with complaints of left dorsal lateral wrist pain. He is a left hand dominant cornerback for a local high school football team. The injury occurred after a collision with an opponent football player and fall on an outstretched hand during the previous night's game. He recalls that he immediately experienced pain to his wrist with a popping sensation during his fall. His range-of-motion was significantly limited. He was assessed at the sideline, placed in a removable splint, and was restricted from further play. During the night, he experienced swelling and ecchymosis in his dorsal wrist with numbness and tingling of his hand and fingers in a median nerve distribution. For pain relief, he took ibuprofen and frequently applied ice to help reduce swelling.
Physical Exam:
Left Hand Exam (Exam limited due to pain)
Inspection: Moderate swelling and ecchymosis circumferentially around the wrist. No erythema or scars noted. Pulses intact. Subjective numbness noted in a median nerve distribution, but otherwise, the hand was neurovascularly intact.
Palpation: Tenderness in the dorsal area, snuff box and distal radial area.
Range of Motion: Unable to form a fist due to pain. Minimal movement in wrist extension, flexion, radial deviation, ulnar deviation and supination.
Muscle Strength: Difficult to assess due to pain but gross motor function intact.
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