Dr. Jai Sungaran diagnoses and treats a comprehensive range of injuries, diseases, and deformities of the hand and wrist.  Whenever it is in the patient’s best interests to treat any of these conditions non-surgically, Dr. Sungaran will always recommend doing so.  However, when surgery is necessary, he uses the least invasive methods available to help ensure the fastest and least painful recovery possible.

Hand and wrist conditions treated at our Sutherland Shire clinic locations include:

• Wrist fractures: Wrist fractures can range from minor fractures that heal without surgical intervention to catastrophic fractures that require stabilisation with pins, screws, and plates. In the case of the latter, Dr. Sungaran can use minimally invasive arthroscopic surgery techniques to perform the surgery.
• Hand fractures: Hand fractures, like wrist fractures, can be relatively simple, or they can involve displaced bone fragments, in which case surgery will be required.
• Scaphoid fractures: The scaphoid bone is one of the eight small bones that comprise the carpal bones” of the wrist. It is also the most frequently injured of these bones, as it often takes the brunt of blows when people fall onto outstretched hands.  In many cases, people believe their wrists merely to be sprained until the pain fails to subside and they finally seek treatment.
• Scaphoid non-union: Indeed, so many people fail to realise the true extent of their scaphoid injuries that they never seek treatment. As a result, their scaphoid injuries never heal.  Scaphoid fractures that do not heal clinically referred to as scaphoid non-union can lead to impaired wrist motion and arthritis of the wrist.
• Soft tissue injuries: Soft tissue injuries include lacerations (tears in the skin of the hand), nail bed injuries, tendon injuries, nerve injuries, arterial injuries, and amputations. When these injuries require surgery, Dr. Sungaran uses microsurgical techniques to make intricate repairs to the tiny blood vessels, nerves, and other structures that lie within the hand and wrist.
• Carpal tunnel syndrome: This common condition, caused by the compression of the median nerve at the wrist, can often be treated non-surgically. If absolutely necessary, Dr. Sungaran can perform minimally invasive, endoscopic carpal tunnel release surgery.
• Trigger finger (stenosing tenosynovitis): This condition, in which the flexor tendons no longer function properly, prevents a person from straightening his or her finger after bending it. When the finger finally does straighten, it does so with a snap similar to the firing of a trigger hence, the colloquial name.  If non-surgical therapy proves ineffective, the condition can generally be corrected through a minor surgical procedure.
• Dupuytren’s contracture (palmar fibromatosis): This hand deformity involves a gradual thickening of the tissue beneath the palm, eventually resulting in the fingers being pulled back into a permanently curled position. Both non-surgical and surgical treatments are available, with the latter providing the longest-term solution.
• De Quervain’s tenosynovitis: This painful condition results from inflammation of the tendons extending from the thumb to the wrist, making it difficult to grip objects such as coffee cups. Non-surgical therapy is often quite effective in the treatment of the condition.
• Arthritis: Osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis of the hand and wrist can be painful and debilitating. Although there is no cure for either type of arthritis, both non-surgical and surgical treatments can help to manage symptoms of the condition and improve quality of life.
• Keinbock’s disease: Keinbock’s disease is a condition in which the lunate bone of the wrist loses its blood supply. The initial symptom of the disease is wrist pain.  It progresses to an arthritic stage and eventually results in the death of the bone.  If caught in its early stages, it may be possible to treat the disease simply through observation and immobilisation.  The disease is often diagnosed at the same time as a diagnosis of arthritis, by which point surgery is necessary.  Surgery may take the form of lengthening, shortening, or fusing bones in the forearm or wrist as necessary.  In advanced stages, complete fusion of the wrist may be recommended.
• Cubital tunnel syndrome (ulnar tunnel syndrome): This condition is caused by compression of the ulnar nerve at the wrist, resulting in numbness and tingling in the little and ring fingers. Unless the condition is caused by a ganglion cyst, it can usually be treated non-surgically.
• Complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS): CRPS of the hand is a chronic condition involving intense burning pain and increased skin sensitivity. Although there is no cure for CRPS, it can effectively be managed through non-surgical treatments in its earliest stages.
• Ganglion cysts: These common, noncancerous lumps that form on the hands and wrists generally disappear on their own without medical intervention. However, if a cyst is painful or if it interferes with the function of the hand, Dr. Sungaran can drain the cyst through aspiration or surgically remove the cyst.
• Mallet finger: Mallet finger is a deformity in which the fingertip droops due to an injury to the extensor tendon responsible for straightening it. If only the tendon is injured, then mallet finger can generally be treated through splint therapy and subsequent hand therapy.  However, if the bone was also damaged, then surgery may be recommended.

For further information, please consult the pages devoted to these hand and wrist conditions by following the links provided.  Then contact Southern Hand & Wrist to schedule your initial consultation with Dr. Jai Sungaran at his Caringbah or Burwood office at your convenience.  We would be delighted to assist you in any way that we can.