Fracture of a bone of the hand located at the base of the thumb. It is the most commonly fractured bone in the hand.
The most common cause is a blunt traumatism with a sharp object or falling to the ground, placing the hand to break the fall. It is frequent in sports which involves stopping a ball with the hands, for example, in the case of a goalkeeper.
This causes pain at the base of the thumb and swelling. It increases when moving the finger or the wrist or when picking up something with the hand.
It is diagnosed with the patient's clinical questioning and a physical examination. Sometimes, it is difficult to clearly identify it in an X-ray, so an MRI might be necessary to complete the study.
It requires immobilisation with plaster and analgesics / anti-inflammatory medication.
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