Swibrace offers braces for various indications
Carpal tunnel syndrome is a very common condition, leading to hand numbness and tingling in hand. It is related to the compression of the median nerve at the wrist. It is frequently bilateral, though one side is often more affected than the other.
The traditional treatment of carpal tunnel syndrome is an operation, making more room for the median nerve at the wrist’s carpal tunnel. In the early stages, a splint worn at night can decrease the symptoms. It is indicated in patients with mild to moderate symptoms. Swibrace’s splint is well tolerated as it is light and comfortable. It can be cleaned in a washing machine, with the usual laundry. The brace is resistant and will not break over time.
The brace needs to hold the wrist in neutral or a resting position in slight dorsal flexion to be efficient. Please pay attention to scan the wrist in this position, not in the Phalen nor the reverse Phalen positions, that is, in marked palmar flexion or dorsal flexion!
Choose the below-elbow wrist brace. The brace can be relatively short to avoid limiting forearm rotation. Therefore, when designing the brace, we advise doing the proximal cut reasonably close to the wrist.
Please, send us feedback about improving the patient’s symptoms with Swibrace’s splint. All suggestions for possible improvements to Swibrace’s splints are welcome (info@swibrace.com).
Click here to see all the brace templates.
Tenosynovitis affects, at the level of the wrist, the tendons of the Abductor pollicis longus and the Extensor pollicis brevis. At this location, the tendons are contained in a tight tunnel, called the first compartment, that may become thick, causing painful tendons’ entrapment. In addition to medication, a splint restraining the thumb motion is effective in treating early cases. Surgery is indicated when the condition is more severe.
Put the thumb at rest during scanning, in slight opposition.
Choose the scaphoid wrist brace. The brace can be relatively short to avoid limiting forearm rotation. Therefore, when designing the brace, we advise doing the proximal cut reasonably close to the wrist.
Please, send us feedback about improving the patient’s symptoms with Swibrace’s splint. All suggestions for possible improvements to Swibrace’s splints are welcome (info@swibrace.com).
Click here to see all the brace templates.
A lesion to the radial nerve at the arm causes a palsy of wrist extension (and finger and thumb extension). The function of the hand is severely affected by this malposition, and over time, the wrist will stiffen in this pathologic position. The patient risks keeping this vicious position even after nerve recovery, which is relatively frequent after contusion of the nerve, after some weeks or months. During the period of the palsy, the function of the hand can be dramatically improved by maintaining the wrist in marked dorsal flexion. The light and comfortable Swibrace’s below-elbow wrist brace is particularly indicated in a patient presenting a radial nerve palsy. The splint is well tolerated as it is light and comfortable. It can be cleaned in a washing machine, with the usual laundry. The brace is resistant and will not break over time.
The brace will maintain the wrist in the scanned position. For radial nerve palsy, the brace needs to hold the wrist in marked dorsal flexion, so scan the wrist in that position – you may hold the patient’s fingers during scanning.
Choose the below-elbow wrist brace. The brace can be relatively short to avoid limiting forearm rotation. Therefore, when designing the brace, we advise doing the proximal cut reasonably close to the wrist.
Please, send us feedback about improving the patient’s symptoms with Swibrace’s splint. All suggestions for possible improvements to Swibrace’s splints are welcome (info@swibrace.com).
Click here to see all the brace templates.
Rhiza means in Greek root. Rhizarthrosis is degenerative osteoarthritis at the basis (or root) of the thumb, specifically of the joint between the trapezium, a small carpal bone, and the base of the first metacarpal. It is a common condition, causing local pain, deformity, decreased strength and functional limitations. The initial treatment involves a combination of medication and splints. Surgery may be indicated in severe cases, always after an attempt of conservative treatment, comprising at least wearing an adapted splint.
In rhizarthrosis, the deformity that installs itself over time consists of adduction of the first metacarpal, decreasing the opening of the thumb, followed by thumb metacarpophalangeal extension – in an attempt to compensate for metacarpal adduction. Both deformities severely affect thumb function.
There are two types of braces for rhizarthrosis, a day and a night splint. The day splint aims to improve function by maintaining the metacarpophalangeal joint at a neutral position or in slight flexion – preventing or correcting joint hyperextension. The night splint aims to support the affected trapezio-metacarpal joint in a resting position. Nothing should be hard on the ulnar side of the hand, or the patients will have difficulty writing or using a computer mouse.
For the day splint, make sure the thumb is in slight opposition to the fingers, with the thumb metacarpophalangeal joint neutral or in slight palmar flexion. Don’t accept thumb hyperextension.
For the day splint, choose Swibrace’s rhizarthrosis brace with the immobilization of the metacarpophalangeal thumb joint, and decide whether the trapezio-metacarpal joint needs to be immobilized or not. For the night splint, you can choose the brace with or without thumb metacarpophalangeal joint immobilization, but take care to immobilize the trapezio-metacarpal joint.
Please, send us feedback about improving the patient’s symptoms with Swibrace’s splint. All suggestions for possible improvements to Swibrace’s splints are welcome (info@swibrace.com).
Click here to see all the brace templates.
The thumb is frequently injured in ski injuries. The medial (ulnar) ligament can be torn, with sometimes the avulsion of a small fractured bone chip. Severe cases need to be operated. Milder lesions can be treated with an adapted brace, immobilizing the metacarpophalangeal thumb joint. The same after ligament repair. Avoid in the acute phase a 3D-printed brace, as the scan will be done on a swollen limb. Wait until the post-traumatic swelling is gone.
Make sure the thumb is in the correct position, usually in neutral or slight palmar flexion. Don’t accept thumb subluxation.
Choose Swibrace’s rhizarthrosis brace with the immobilization of the metacarpophalangeal thumb joint.
Please, send us feedback about improving the patient’s symptoms with Swibrace’s splint. All suggestions for possible improvements to Swibrace’s splints are welcome (info@swibrace.com).
Click here to see all the brace templates.
Ligamentous injuries of the carpus, stable or operated distal radius or scaphoid or carpal fractures, may require prolonged immobilization. Though Swibrace’s splints with a large ulnar opening allow some adaptation to swelling, it is better to wait until the post-traumatic swelling has subsided before prescribing a 3D-printed brace. Swibrace’s casts, though light and comfortable, allow prolonged immobilization periods. The doctor will decide which of the below-elbow wrist brace or the scaphoid brace is best adapted to the patient’s needs.
Make sure the wrist is not any more swollen, and do the scan in slight wrist dorsal flexion. Before scanning, put some “putti” where you fear possible skin compression, like at the level of the ulnar head.
Use either the below-elbow wrist or the scaphoid brace.
Please, send us feedback about improving the patient’s symptoms with Swibrace’s splint. All suggestions for possible improvements to Swibrace’s splints are welcome (info@swibrace.com).
Click here to see all the brace templates.