Broken finger what type of doctor

If you have a finger injury, schedule your appointment with an expert physician at Coastal Orthopedics, here. We all use our hands for most daily activities and our fingers are relatively fragile. While fingers are easy to hurt, it can be difficult to diagnose the injury at home.

Sometimes, what appears to be a simple bruise can be a broken finger and vice versa. So, how can you tell? When a finger is fractured, the bone has lost its integrity. Depending on the severity of the impact, a fractured finger could mean that it has a hairline crack or a completely shattered bone. A finger bone can become broken in many ways, though it generally occurs after some type of trauma or accident. Symptoms of a broken finger include:. Within about minutes of breaking your finger, you may notice bruising, swelling and possibly redness.

As the swelling continues, it will become difficult to move the finger as it will become stiff. This swelling can also occur in the surrounding fingers. If the swelling continues and the finger becomes numb, there could be nerve damage or the nerves could be compressed due to the swelling. To diagnose a broken finger, your orthopedic doctor will need to perform multiple tests. The most common test that can show a broken finger is an X-ray. An X-ray will help the doctor evaluate the situation and the position of the broken bone in the finger.

Educational text answers on HealthTap are not intended for individual diagnosis, treatment or prescription. For these, please consult a doctor virtually or in person. For potential or actual medical emergencies, immediately call or your local emergency service. Ask your question Ask question Free. HealthTap doctors are based in the U. Video chat with a U.

Get prescriptions or refills through a video chat, if the doctor feels the prescriptions are medically appropriate.

Please note, we cannot prescribe controlled substances, diet pills, antipsychotics, or other abusable medications. Connect with a doctor now. Get help now: Ask doctors free Educational text. Similar questions A year-old member asked:. Jeffrey Wint answered. In these cases there usually is a need for internal iixation , ie screws pins or plates. Michael Fitzmaurice answered. These bones move together to allow a vast range of motion in the wrist. Your palm or mid-hand is made up of metacarpal bones.

These bones have muscular attachments. The bridge of your wrist as the individual fingers. These bones are commonly injured during direct trauma like a crush or punching injury. As we mentioned earlier, these are the most frequently injured part of the hand.

Fingers are made up of ligaments that are strong supportive tissue that connects bone to bone. Fingers are also composed of tendons which attach the tissue from muscle to the bone. There are also three phalanxes bones. There are no muscles in the fingers, as they move by the pull of the forearm muscles on the tendons. There are three bones in each finger that are named due to their relationship to the palm of the hand.

Knuckles are joints that are formed by bones of the fingers that can be injured or dislocated due to any trauma on the hand. The first and biggest knuckle is the junction that is between the fingers and hand called the metacarpophalangeal joint or MCP. The next knuckle is out towards the fingernail and is called the proximal interphalangeal joint PIP.

This joint can get dislocated in sporting events when an object or ball directly strikes the finger. The farthest joint on the finger is called the distal interphalangeal joint DIP. Usually, injuries to this joint include a torn tendon avulsion injury or fracture. The orthopedic surgeon on an emergency doctor will determine how stable your broken finger is.

If the fracture is stable, then the treatment could be as simple as buddy taping or splinting one finger to another. There are a few different ways you can symbolize a finger. First is simply with a splint, which can realign the fracture fragments. After an injury, if swelling and pain still limit the use of your fingers, or your fingers become numb, then you will want to seek medical attention. If your injury includes crushed tissue, laceration, exposed bone , you must go to the emergency room or seek medical care immediately.

Some fractures can be subtle and the pain might be bearable. But if you suspect that your finger might be fractured, you should seek medical attention. The main tool to diagnose broken fingers is with an X-ray.

The doctor will need to do an X-ray to see the position of the broken finger bones. For more complex injuries, the doctor might need to get the advice of an orthopedic whos specializes with bones and joints.

Or your doctor might need to consult with a hand surgeon. Advertising revenue supports our not-for-profit mission. This content does not have an English version. This content does not have an Arabic version. Diagnosis The diagnosis of a broken hand generally includes a physical exam of the affected hand and X-rays.

More Information X-ray. Request an Appointment at Mayo Clinic. Share on: Facebook Twitter. Show references Wrist fractures. American Society for Surgery of the Hand.

Accessed April 20, Sebastin S, et al. Overview of finger, hand, and wrist fractures. Scaphoid fracture of the wrist.