Hand ergotherapy for rheumatic diseases and the special importance of hand surgery

Background: Human hands play an important role in overcoming routine daily life. As a consequence of limitations in the function of the hand due to rheumatic diseases, various manual activities can become an enormous challenge or even become absolutely impossible.

Methods: This review article discusses the possibilities of hand ergotherapy and explains the most important assist devices.

Conclusions: The main area of occupational and hand therapy interventions in patients with rheumatoid arthritis is the postoperative or conservative treatment of wrist and finger joints. The main areas of concern are to maintain the mobility of the joints, when necessary and possible mobilization of the joints, strengthen the muscles, the prophylaxis or correction of deformities with thermoplastic splints, conservative pain relief and anti-inflammatory treatment, joint protection precautions and teaching of home exercises for prophylaxis of contracture. Further areas of therapy are instruction and provision of adaptive devices for limitations of the upper and/or lower extremities, especially training of activities of daily living (ADL) and patient education.