All posts by Marwa Najem

All Blogs, Basketball, Wrist/Hand

Nick Ward’s left hand fracture

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Nicholas Jeffrey Ward, an American college basketball player for the Michigan State Spartans injured his hand in the Spartans win over Ohio State  on Sunday, Feb. 17, 2019.

According to Ward, he injured his hand when he made contact with an opponent’s elbow. Wards’ hand was wrapped in a green tape and he did not start the second half of the game. Ward underwent a surgery later Sunday night to repair his left-hand fracture.  Some of the media reports said it was a “hairline” fracture. The term “hairline” is usually meant to indicate that you can barely see the break and the bone is structurally sound. It’s not clear why someone would have surgery on such a fracture. With the exception, perhaps, of the scaphoid bone in the wrist, cracks in the hand bones tend to heal quickly without surgery.  

It’s not clear when he will return.  With or without surgery, hand bones need about 2-3 months to get to a level of healing where contact sports such as basketball entail limited risk (ie about 80 to 90% strength).

 

All Blogs, Basketball, dislocations, strain

Anthony Davis Finger Injury

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Anthony Marshon Davis Jr. is an American professional basketball player who plays power forward and center positions for the New Orleans Pelicans Of the National Basketball Association. During a January 18th game against the Portland Trail Blazers, he jammed  his left index finger defending Portland’s Zach Collins in the final minutes of the game.

Sprains and dislocations of the finger  are common, particularly in ball sports. The most common area of sprain is the middle knuckle of your finger.  Not the joint near the tip, but the next one up closer to your hand. Sprains cause pain, swelling, and stiffness.  In most cases the ligaments are only partially torn. The ligaments heal quickly and it is often possible to continue playing.  Even a complete dislocation will heal quite quickly. The ligaments are solid by about a month. The swelling and stiffness improve for a year.  The only risk is stiffness, so it’s important to move and stretch. Radiographs are taken to be sure there is no fracture.

Depending on the type of sprain,   Davis can return to play as soon as he is effective.   He has missed multiple games this season due to illness. Reports indicate will be out for a couple of weeks with the strain.  This is happening in the midst of his request for a trade, which led to fine for making the request publicly, which violated the collective bargaining agreement

 

Ankle/Foot, Football, Other

Allen Hurn’s left ankle fracture-dislocation

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Allen Hurns, an American wide receiver for the Dallas Cowboys National Football League, dislocated his left ankle in Saturday’s win over the Seahawks. The injury happened in the first quarter of the Dallas Cowboys’ 24-22 wild-card win against the Seattle Seahawks.  Hurn’s left leg was twisted as he was tackled by Seahawk Bradley McDougald on a 14-yard catch. Very similar to Gordon Hayward’s ankle injury.

His foot was deformed and he laid on his stomach on the field, writhing in pain. The players quickly cleared the area to allow space for medical staff to put a splint on Hurns’ leg.

An x-ray showed a broken fibula.  In accordance with most of the posts on our site he also got the obligatory MRI (athletes seem to get them for everything).  It’s not clear that an MRI provides useful information in this setting. He had surgery the same night while the game was still underway. This type of injury is routinely treated with plate and screw fixation of the fibula.  In many cases the ligaments are repaired on the inside of the ankle as well. It takes at least 6 months and likely more towards a year to be ready for high level athletics again.