Dupuytrens – Alternative Treatment

Transcript

Dupuytren’s disease is a genetic condition. There’s no cure. And unfortunately there are no nonmedical treatment options available. Diet, exercises, various types of splints, various types of therapy and other nonmedical treatments have all been tried and none have proven to be successful in managing Dupuytren’s disease. It’s a medical condition. And fortunately, medical treatment is usually successful in improving patient function in people suffering from Dupuytren’s contractures. Since its initial description more than 200 years ago, Dupuytren’s disease was almost exclusively a surgical problem. Many other treatment modalities were tried, but none were successful. And surgery was always prescribed for people suffering from significant Dupuytren;s contracture. In the last decade, a new drug, collagenase, has been developed and tested and is now routinely used in treating patients with mild to moderate Dupuytren’s contracture. This non-surgical option is a great breakthrough. It avoids the complications of surgery, wound healing, secondary stiffness, and in most cases, the need for physical therapy after treatment. And in properly selected patients, and when performed by a properly trained physician, the treatment is usually very successful with very few complications. However, surgery remains an important component of treatment for Dupuyten’s disease because not all patients are appropriate candidates for collagenase treatment, and some patients have contractures that are so severe they’re not likely to respond to anything short of surgery. This is a discussion to have with your hand surgeon about what treatment options are available and what is the best treatment for your particular case.