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After surgical treatment, patients are released from the hospital or surgical facility, usually with a bandage and a splint to keep the fingers that were treated and full extension for at least the first seven to 10 days after surgery. Following this, because the surgery leads to scar formation and stiffness, therapy to restore mobility is almost always prescribed. Ideally therapy starts within two to three weeks after the operation at most. We want to get people moving before their body has an opportunity to create enough scar that they get very, very stiff. That therapy usually continues for six to 12 weeks after the operation until patients are again able to make a full fist and extend their fingers. During that time, they’re encouraged to gradually resume activities, to improve flexibility and strength in the hand. We often also have a therapist fabricate a splint for the affected fingers to keep the fingers in extension while patients are sleeping at night, since most of us tend to curl our fingers up and we don’t want the fingers to become stiff and flection overnight. The treatment is designed to restore extension. So we don’t want people flexing and getting stiff. We usually ask patients to wear those night splints for six months after surgery. By that time there’s usually no further need for therapy, and patients can discard the splints and resume normal activities. Usually people are able to go back to work and most of their functions within three to six weeks after surgery, depending on the extent of the surgery and how they’re healing.
