Is there a Doctor in the house? Go-Dad's Stupid Question!

[GoDadGo]

Hey All You Doctors Out There,

Back in 2017, I whacked the pinkie off of my left hand which a skilled surgeon was able to stick back on, but the joints were toast.
That pinking has no joints, but mobility, where it connects to my hand, is good so I can type and even write.
With that said, I've been contemplating having the main/first joint added.
The upside is that I can still count to 10, 21 when I'm in the shower, plus I look fancy when holding a glass or cup because I'm always "Pinkie Up!"
It is my primary hand (Leftie / South Paw) so grasping tools and writing better is the main reason why I'd like to have a little better articulation of this hand.

You can see the protruding pinkie at the end of this video:
......https://youtu.be/QyMN73IW6I8

Is it worth the aggravation & risk to fix my Dr. Evil Pinkie?

Steve

[cv2065]

If you were 20....I'd say yeah, go for it. Now....leave the Evil one alone. It's a lifetime achievement award.

[GoDadGo]

If you were 20....I'd say yeah, go for it. Now....leave the Evil one alone. It's a lifetime achievement award.

That's what I'm thinking because that issue stalled my project and every other thing I was working on, for about a year.
What made me think about his is I bumped into My Hand Surgeon yesterday and he asked me if I wanted to fix it he'd be willing to do the deal.
At 58, I don't know if I'm willing to lose another year dealing with the rehab since we are all just starting to emerge from the trials of the COVID-19.

Thanks for the opinion CV!

[CDXXVII]

If it was my hand I would get it fixed. Then again, I work with my hands and even the small amount or arthritis I am currently dealing with drives me nuts. I can't imagine it would take a year to recover from this. It's not like they are chopping it off again.

[jdogdude78]

I am an oncologist, so I cannot offer much here.
It does seem to be a personal decision.

In general, never a bad idea to just go and talk to a specialist (hand surgeon) and see what they say.
They can offer insight into things that nobody else will think of.

[Cobradavid]

What Dr. jdogdude said: check with the surgeon. Ask what the recovery time will be and how much rehab would be required. Ask what dexterity improvements would be expected. Ask if there would be any muscle atrophy from 3+ years of non-use.

David

[Jeff Kleiner]

Steve, your hoity-toity tea and crumpets pinkie in the air lopped off finger is much more polite than my flipping the bird lopped off finger!

145575

The first time I cut it off the hand surgeon came in and said that they could try to recreate the joint with multiple surgeries...or she could pin it and I’d have no movement. I said “Pin it, I have work to do tomorrow.” Ten years later when I cut it off the second time (yeah, you read that right) there was no discussion, they just put it back like it was...and I worked the next day ;) If you’re asking me I say leave it alone—-chicks dig scars!

Jeff

[GoDadGo]

Steve, your hoity-toity tea and crumpets pinkie in the air lopped off finger is much more polite than my flipping the bird lopped off finger!

145575

The first time I cut it off the hand surgeon came in and said that they could try to recreate the joint with multiple surgeries...or she could pin it and I’d have no movement. I said “Pin it, I have work to do tomorrow.” Ten years later when I cut it off the second time (yeah, you read that right) there was no discussion, they just put it back like it was...and I worked the next day ;) If you’re asking me I say leave it alone—-chicks dig scars!

Jeff

Thanks Dr. Jeff!

[wallace18]

Sorry Steve but I can't help myself.

You might be a redneck. If you ask medical questions on a car forum. LOL. :p

[Papa]

I think if it were me in the same situation I would likely just have it removed and be done with it.

Dave

[GoDadGo]

Sorry Steve but I can't help myself.

You might be a redneck. If you ask medical questions on a car forum. LOL. :p

More like an R.C.A. since I'm 100% from the Bayou.

Also, we do have quite a few wrench swinging M.D.'s on the forum.

R.C.A. Link Shown Below:
https://www.logolynx.com/topic/registered+coonass

[GoDadGo]

I think if it were me in the same situation I would likely just have it removed and be done with it.

Dave

Then I'd only be able to count to 9 Papa Dave!
Kind of a tough deal for a banker don't you think?

[Papa]

You can still count to 10 in the men's room if you really need to. :p

Or, you can switch to binary and have lots of extra digits.

[Al_C]

I appreciate the fact that you are asking our opinions. To me, the determining factors are: a) what's the upside and b)how long is the recovery/rehab. If you believe you will regain full function (and in my experience any orthopedic adventure is not 100%) and it won't take years and years of PT to get there, then do it. If not, re-evaluate.

[chmhasy]

You can still count to 10 in the men's room if you really need to. :p

Or, you can switch to binary and have lots of extra digits.

Counting in binary with fingers is hard.

[Mark Eaton]

Steve,
Definitely talk to a hand surgeon, I don't do that type of surgery but I have seen them work some miracles. From the video it almost looks like it is in the way. Maybe if they can't return the joint function they could remove the finger and improve the dexterity in that hand.

mark

[cfriedman67]

My wife who is a hand therapist said that sometimes having it fused in a more flexed functional position could be a good solution. Worth discussing with your doctor.

[GoDadGo]

Steve,
Definitely talk to a hand surgeon, I don't do that type of surgery but I have seen them work some miracles. From the video it almost looks like it is in the way. Maybe if they can't return the joint function they could remove the finger and improve the dexterity in that hand.

mark

The surgeon who did the original repair said that I may want to consider doing a "One Joint Replacement" because he reattached all of the tendons and it moves well.
He also worked on my ring and social finger because those were damaged too, but he only had to reattach some tendons and those fingers which are now working fine.
I'll schedule an appointment with him after we get back from Road Atlanta (HSR Walter Mitty Event) which is only a few weeks away.
Maybe just messing with one finger won't be as bad as recovering from the original injury.
One thing I can say is it looks okay, plus and the ability to type is huge!

PS:..On another note, Megan is doing well with her U.C. and now attending Law School at Wake Forest.

[Bob Cowan]

IMO, I would get the new joint. Fine dexterity in the dominant hand is pretty important. You're still young at 58, with many years of good use left in those hands.

The recovery time is usually very quick. You'll be doing home PT for 6 months or more. But it's simple finger and hand exercises, you can do those anywhere.

[David Hodgkins]

Patient: "Hey Doc, it kind'a hurts when I do this":

https://thefactoryfiveforum.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=145754&d=1617752395

Doc: "Don't do that!"

:D