Abstract
Background/Aim: Overload of the hand and wrist are inherent to any occupation that includes manual work and holds true for surgical specialties in medicine. This pilot study evaluated hand/wrist injuries/ issues in a cohort of orthopaedic surgeons. Since orthopaedic surgery requires handling of tools and limbs that can be heavy, we hypothesized that there would be a significant amount of hand injuries/issues.
Methods: A modification of the Standardized Nordic Questionnaire (anonymous survey) was distributed through Research Electronic Data Capture (REDCap). The questionnaire evaluates subject characteristics such as age and years in practice as well the existence of hand/wrist issues.
Results: Hand injuries were common in orthopaedic surgeons (55%), and more common in female respondents (67%). A low BMI was associated with female gender (p=0.04) and prevalence of hand issues (p=0.01). There were no differences between light and heavy orthopaedic subspecialties in the number of injuries reported. Increased age and career length increased the likelihood of hand/wrist issues and issues were more common in the dominant hand p=0.65. Ninety-eight percent of those experiencing pain did not report their issues to their employer.
Conclusions: This pilot study supports small hand-size, female gender, and low BMI as predisposing to the development of hand injuries/conditions in surgery and is in tandem with the literature. Further study is needed but it is possible that adapting instruments to smaller-handed surgeons, may help address some issues that exist today in surgery and orthopaedic surgery specifically.