UKC

While bouldering (indoors in this weather....) I was pulling hard on a small crip and heard/felt a snap/pop in my finger right ring finger joint. No pain or discomfort right away but stiffness and soreness soon followed. 

Cold water has helped to sooth this and helpnit move.

Advice please and what's happened to my finger

More importantly, how long before I can climb again...

In reply to marktrik:

Sounds like an A2 pulley tear.  Rest, RICE, no crimps, tape to support, and for me 12+ months recovery 

In reply to marktrik:

Here's a good blog on the subject: 

https://eu.blackdiamondequipment.com/en_DE/experience-story?cid=esther-smit...

Firstly, do not ice after the initial 48hrs. If it was me I wouldn't ice at all as it actually contributes to poor initial healing and can lead to poorly formed scar tissue. 

My advice having had and rehabbed far too many pulley injuries is thus: take a week off, then start h-taping and laps on very easy routes or circuits, loading the finger lightly and getting aerobically tired (light pump in the arms). This light pump combined with gentle loading means the ligament is well supplied with blood resulting in faster healing. Ligaments are like sponges, and without loading they take a ludicrously long time to heal. 

After around 5-6 weeks the finger should be significantly less tender but still sore when loaded. At this point you introduce the rehab/rebuilding protocols from the above blog, which I'd recommend combining with a hydrolyzed collagen and vitamin C supplement as this has been shown to improve recovery by 25% compared to without. I use this one: 

https://www.amazon.de/gp/aw/d/B07QJV6RCP?psc=1&ref=ppx_pop_mob_b_asin_t... 

All being well, the recovery period for an A2 pulley strain (grade 1) is usually around 3 months, with moderate discomfort continuing for around another 3 months. The fingerboard protocol will help rehab the injury successfully and will also go towards preventing the injury happening again. 

A plus side: when properly rehabbed the finger will come back stronger than before. Also take this as a chance to do some structured strength work i.e. pull-ups, press ups, core etc to give you a good strength base to build on when you come back! 

Best of luck and if you have any questions I'm happy to answer them! 

In reply to MischaHY:

I did exactly the same to my left ring finger 6 weeks ago. Just lately occasionally  my hand gets ‘stuck’ closed and it won’t open without massaging the tendon in my hand to that finger. Is that a common side effect of scar tissue do you know?

In reply to marktrik:

I've done it twice, the last time it happened was at the climbing wall, I went to work the next day and spent the day gripping the controls of the forklift I used to drive, by the time I went home my finger wouldn't straighten, and never has since.

In reply to marktrik:

Agreed that this sounds like a pulley tear.  I've had 4 of these to date (you'd hope I'd learned better by now!)  So firstly, sympathies - it's a frustrating injury.  But secondly, take heart - unless it's a serious rupture, current advice is for only a short lay-off before returning to GENTLE climbing.

If you've never had a pulley tear before, it's probably worth splashing out on a visit to a physio to check that it's not a complete rupture.

Assuming it's only a partial tear, the advice from MischaHY sounds spot on to me (apart from the supplements advice, which I haven't tried).  I can confirm that I was back to climbing my usual grade within 3 months following a similar regime.

The really difficult part of this regime is moderating the intensity of exercise during the recovery period.  You can promise yourself that you won't push yourself, but when you're in the moment on the rock or resin, it's hard to resist the temptation to try that move!

In reply to heleno:

I'm mega sceptical about adding in random supplements but must say I'm sold on the collagen. I was plagued with pulley problems for 3-4 years and then over a period of two months whilst taking it and doing my usual fingerboarding, they vanished and ever complain anymore. 

In reply to WaterMonkey:

I'd strongly advise you go to the doctor and arrange an MRI for the hand as this is not normal for a pulley injury in my experience. 

In reply to marktrik:

Looks like I'm going to contact my local physiotherapist tomorrow and have a chat. I can move it so a lot better then yesterday and there is bruising at the base so I'm thinking/hoping its only a dislocation.

In reply to marktrik:

I'd be amazed, it sounds like a pulley to me - but great to find out for sure. Bruising usually indicates a higher grade tear unfortunately  

In reply to MischaHY:

Trying to remain optimistic. ....

In reply to marktrik:

Be optimistic by all means.

Even a full pulley tear can heal with the right regime.

Just get it diagnosed a.s.a.p (sounds like your doing just that). And then make sure you work with a physio who knows about climbing to get your injury fully healed within a reasonable timeframe.

In reply to marktrik:

Oh, absolutely. Just wanted to let you know it may be at the longer end of the healing spectrum. Every pulley injury I've ever had has healed very well indeed so just be prepared to commit to the rehab process and you'll be fine. 

In reply to MischaHY:> which I'd recommend combining with a hydrolyzed collagen and vitamin C supplement as this has been shown to improve recovery by 25% compared to without.

Do you have a link to references for that? That sounds like quite a claim! 

I'm reply to the op

Unlucky. Take it slow. A minor sprain can turn into something much, much worse if you don't sort it out. Initial rest followed by very very gentle use, then more aggressive loading after 6 weeks seems to work for me. That's if it is just a normal pulley sprain. The advice of a specialist is worth a lot of money in my opinion. 

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In reply to marktrik:

I think RICE is outdated. Tendons need blood to heal, and they already don't get much, so icing will just limit that. I usually listen to my body and it tells me when it wants hot or cold treatment, or either in a series. 

In reply to marktrik:

3 month recovery for me. I made mine worse due to a physical job but took 3 months off the indoor walls last winter and returned to full power. It will fix, just listen to your body.

In reply to GDes:

Good article here which also includes the references. 

https://www.outsideonline.com/2392880/gelatin-injury-prevention-recovery

I said recovery, more scientific would have been 'tendon structure'. 

The mechanism seems to be that collagen peptides come into the bloodstream complete, which means that if you load the tendons during the time frame where the peptides are in the bloodstream they can be incorporated directly into the tendons which is a fair bit quicker than the body synthesising its own collagen. 

It's only a couple of papers but personal experience has been positive hence why I'm happy to recommend it as worth trying. 

In reply to MischaHY:

Interesting.  The stuff I'd read seemed to say positive early indications from pre-clinical for vitamin C supplements, but not for collagen.  I assumed this was because collagen was damaged in digestive tract, but this says perhaps not?  

Also, what sort of doses of vitamin C? Presumably much higher than in a standard diet? 

I wonder what effect timing has.  As in, take the collagen and vitamin c close to when the tnedon loading and subsequent repair is going to happen?

Went to see my local physiotherapist and she said the movements good and doesn't think it's any serious tendon damage. Fingers taped together for support and to keep them moving., for about a week. 

Thankfully that's all it is.....

In reply to GDes:

Yes, the collagen needs to be consumed within an hour of loading apparently because it needs to be in the bloodstream when the tendon loading happens. 

In reply to marktrik:

I always wonder and worry when reading these threads that I might have repaired my finger without surgery; a full construction from the forearm flexor tendon.

Then again, after 2 months of attempted rehab, I was still unable to carry a shopping bag in my left hand, and upon opening up, I had partially torn and stretched out A2, A3, A4, and A5.

My only advice is that this surgery, and the rehab sucks a big one. So look after your fingers. I moved to yorkshire for two years with grand plans. Used to stare up at Wellington Crack (E4 5c) wistfully, training plan in hand. Tore it 2 months after arrival, and have, finally, two years later (and two bouts of plastic surgery), got to the point where I can fingerboard effectively.

In reply to WaterMonkey:

Sounds like ‘trigger finger’ ? Nodule on flexor tendon getting stuck in pulley. 
often responds to steroid injection but steroid softens and weakens tendon for a few months after so go easy on climbing if you go down that route 

In reply to marktrik:

Just a thought....

Will be ok to train,  say use a finger board and not using the damaged finger (ring finger right hand). 

Taking it easy not to injure the 2 fingers I'm using (index and middle) also using all fingers on other hand. 

Am I being a bit over optometrist. ....?

10 days in no better.

In reply to marktrik:

I did my ring finger on my left hand the day before your initial post. This has happened to me quite a few times now so I know what to expect. It won't feel significantly better after 10 days. I did my first quick session after injuring it the other day, and that was just 40 minutes doing laps on very easy stuff at the wall. The finger was a bit uncomfortable at times, but I avoided any sharp pain. Currently it is a little swollen and stiff, but only slightly painful if I put pressure on it. I wouldn't go anywhere near a fingerboard at this stage. I will do very easy stuff now for a few weeks, then start finding slightly harder routes which have holds that don't aggravate the finger. I expect it to stay a little swollen and uncomfortable for a long time, but hopefully be back to climbing at my limit in March/April. I find if you concentrate on doing volume up to the point where you can fully load it again then it doesn't take long to get back to where you were before the injury, but I'm thinking of routes rather than bouldering.

In reply to marktrik:

Should be fine as long as the finger isn't loaded, keep it progressive to avoid further injury. Maybe train front two in the big pockets. This is a great grip to train and will bring good gains. 

If I were you I'd be absolutely sessioning the core, pull ups and other conditioning in order to come back stronger. 

Not unless you're trying to sell me glasses... 

In reply to wurzelinzummerset:

Thanks for the advice. Well I normally don't climb much over Christmas do not missing to much. Went I next get on the wall, like u said it will be routes and lower grades. 

Take it easy and feel how it's going. 

In reply to marktrik:

The below link is similar to the advice I was given by a specialist 12 months ago when I hurt my finger (I had a grade 3 rupture).  I started climbing gently 45 days after injury, but am only now just back to the same strength and confidence crimping as I was when I did my injury.

https://theclimbingdoctor.com/pulley-injuries-explained-part-2/

In reply to Matt Alexander:

Thanks for the link, that's really helpful and easy to follow. It explains the use of tape when climbing and I think that's going to be a great help.

As for time scales, sounds like it's a good idea to listen to your body. 

Thanks.