OA Thumb Exercises
The Exercises
Exercise is one of the first lines in management in a thumb joint with normal age related changes. It is key to ensure you continue to function well by maintaining strength, range of movement, fitness and joint health with increasing evidence showing that exercise can protect the joint from further changes. When carrying out this exercise program you may feel some discomfort at the base of your thumb, this is normal. It is important that this pain does not exceed 3/10, where 10/10 is the maximal and 0/10 is no pain. Should you have any concerns please discuss this with your healthcare professional.
Thumb Opposition Stretch
Bring your thumb tip over towards your little finger tip. If this is easily manged, try to slide the thumb tip down to the base of the little finger for a gentle stretch.
Hold for 20 – 30 seconds, repeat 3 – 5 times
Distraction
Grasp the painful thumb with the other hand, behind your back. Relax both arms and hands. Let the weight of the arms gentle provide traction to the joint at the base of the thumb. This can be done at the front if more comfortable.
Hold for 10 -15 seconds, when the joint is painful, repeat 3 – 5 times
Retro-Position
Place the palm of your affected hand against your chest. With your other hand, wrap the fingers around the length of the thumb base as shown. Use the fingers of the unaffected hand to gently ‘roll ‘ the painful thumb away from the chest.
Hold for 20 – 30 seconds, repeat 3 – 5 times
Massage
Self-massage to release the tightness or tension to the muscles in the web space between the index finger and thumb. This can be helpful to alleviate pain.
Massage as shown, below, for 5 minutes. If possible try to stretch the thumb away from the index finger at the same time.
Thumb Abduction
With your little finger and wrist supported on a table with your fingers straight. Bring your thumb out to the side, away from your fingers and hold for 5 seconds, then bring the thumb back in.
Repeat 15 times, with 3 sets
Dorsal Interosseous Strengthening
With your little finger and wrist supported on a table with your fingers straight. Lift your index finger up and away from the other fingers and aim to hold for 5 seconds. If this is easy progress to adding resistance using a light elastic band as shown below.
Repeat 12 – 15 times, repeat 3 sets
Place & Hold
Supporting your hand on a table, place the thumb tip and the index finger together, as shown, making a wide circle. The tip of your thumb should remain flexed at all times. Gently pinch keeping a good position, use pain as your guide as to how hard you preform the action.
Hold for 5 – 10 seconds, repeat 10 times
Surgery
Surgery is a last resort, as the symptoms often stabilise over the long term and can be controlled by the non-surgical treatments above. There are various operations that can be performed to treat this condition. These are listed below:
Osteotomy, which means cutting and realigning the metacarpal bone next to the arthritic joint.
Removal of the trapezium which is removal of the bone at the bottom of the thumb, which forms one surface of the arthritic joint, sometimes combined with reconstruction of the ligaments.
Fusion of the joint, so that it no longer moves. .
Joint replacement, as in a hip replacement.
Denervation, which means cutting small nerve branches that transmit pain from the arthritic joint.