Tendon Injury

[Aettis]

Looking for advice on tendon injury. I have severed a main tendon in my right hand pinky about 3 years ago. While the operations involving tendon removal and basically implanting the tendon into my pinky went seemingly well, they have left my pinky scarred at a 50 degree angle starting at the second joint. Wondering if I have the abililty to pass physical requirements to be a SEAL if just the fact of the pinky itself would keep me from becoming a SEAL.

Any thoughts?

Thanks to all.

-Aettis

[snow85]

wow--

that's really similar to an injury a good friend of mine had as a kid. he jumped over a chain link fence and snagged his pinky on the top. just had surgery to correct it, (after years and years of scar tissue and not being able to move it well), and he's doing great.

this could keep you out, and i'm not sure if you could get a waiver. it's a physical deformity. is the frozen joint b/c of the surgery or b/c you didn't do your rehab? what i'm asking is--

did the surgeon intentionally make your finger that way, or is there just too much garbage in there for you to move it properly?

i don't know how old you are, or when you were planning on applying to the Navy, but if you're serious about it, go back to your doctor and tell him that you want it cleaned up and fixed. it doesn't need to be that way regardless of your career choice.

[Aettis]

Thanks.

To answer your questions. The pinky is "frozen"/"Stuck" due to 4 surgeries to reattach a tendon. the first surgery being botched from the first doctor who didn't know what he was doing. The following three surgeries done to correct the problem. However the problem isn't that I didn't do my rehab, which I did do, but the amount of scar tissue with the amount of time I had to let the pinky rest before rehab began to make sure the stitches holding the new tendon in place didn't break. The result just a lot of gunk. this borders on the surgreon intentionally making this way and there being a heck of lot of scar tissue inside the pinky.Your friend have much luck with his pinky?

20 years of age and a few things in life that have made me consider a few life changes.

I have been told that you do not have to join the Navy branch to neccesarily become a SEAL? Yay or nay?

Thanks snow85.

-Aettis

[snow85]

no, you can't be a SEAL if you're not in the Navy.

yeah.... that's what i figured re: the finger-- a little of both. honestly, i would have a specialist look at it now. you need to get that straightened out (no pun intended), ASAP.

if it's frozen b/c of scar tissue, they can break it up (feels like breaking a bone over and over, literally). then do your rehab to keep it from forming while the area heals. then, as you now know, you have to keep doing it. you shouldn't have had to wait more than a week or two between surgery and rehab. when you started rehab, your therapist should have worked that scar tissue out of there.

right now, there's no telling if the 2nd and 3rd surgeries worked b/c you've got too much other stuff going on in there.

my friend is having fantastic luck, but he went to a specialist, which i recommend that you do. pm me w/ your location and i'll let you know if i know of any close to you.

[Aettis]

Wish I knew this specialist your talking about.

I got screwed it appears with my pinky.

Total of three major surgeries to remove the damaged tendon, take out a good tendon from my arm (an extra you can say), and implant the new tendon. The fourth surgery being scar tissue removal. However the second surgery was performed by a different tendon specialist and she had me in a immobile splint for the first two and half weeks out of my second surgery because the docs were all paranoid that the sutures would be ruptured again. Same thing with the the third surgery...seems like I wasn't even given a fighting chance.

All right, to be a seal you have to be in the Navy which actually calms a lot of decisions for me...

Pming ya my location.

Thanks.

[snow85]

b/c others might read this, i'm going to partially respond to you here.

you had a tendon graft done, which is not an uncommon procedure. remember how tiny the tendons in your hand are?

which sutures are we talking about-- the internal that connected tendon to muscle, or the external that closed the incision? if we're talking about the internal, how did you rupture them the first time?

did you have 1,2, and 3 at the same time? that seems logical and is how they do it with other body parts, but i'm wondering if/why you needed three separate surgeries for that. splint is normal too-- it has to heal enough before you start moving it around. problem is, though, when you move your wrist, forearm, and sometimes your shoulder, you can cause the tendons in your hand to move. tell me more about 1, 2, and 3.

going to check the pm now.

no problem.

[Aettis]

Was a tendon graft. The first surgery was a zigzag incision starting the center of my pinky last digit running down about an inch into my palm. Doc went and sewed the original tendon back together that had been severed, the one main tendon that moves the last digit of the pinky; I also severed the outside tendon that connects to the second digit but since there was an exact tendon on the other side doctors (or so I was told) don't bother fixing it.

Unsure of how the first sutures ruptured (internal) I think it happened in my sleep. Therapy wasn't doing nothing has far as moving the digit. went to a specialist after that who told me that in order for a new tendon to be placed back in they would have to insert a silicone rod that would form the tendon tunnel for the new tendon to be put in. This new tendon was removed from my right forearm starting with an incision point at the wrist joint and two that are about 8-10 inches away as well.

After the silicone was implanted for a period of three months they removed it and replaced with the tendon from my forearm.

Like I said with the immobility of the splint I was in after each surgery it locked up from an early point in two points. on the outside of the second joint at the original incision point and at my wrist line where they removed the would be new tendon. I ended up tearing through the scar tissue in my wrist but that took about 2 1/2 weeks. Using ultra sound to loosen up the tissue as well as a heated tool of some sort that transfered a good amount of heat into the scarred area.

Fourth surgery after that was to removed some scar tissure at the base of the incision about 3/4 way up my palm, this went well but scarred heavily again but I managed to keep that pretty loose.

and bam that was about a year ago and the insurance company won't be paying for anymore therapy as they set a limit to that crap when I wasn't gettin the results they saw fit....

-Aettis