Comprehensive Functional and Vocational Rehabilitation of A Kitchen Worker with Kienbocks Disease

Abstract

Background: A hand injury can be catastrophic because one needs to use their hand for many different tasks in day-to-day life. People who work in the kitchen on a regular basis must repeatedly move their hands, arms, wrists, and shoulders while stirring, chopping, lifting, and carrying heavy vessels. To perform all the activities of daily living complete or functional range of motion and grip strength are the important components. The present case study describes the case of post-operative wrist stiffness secondary to kienbocks disease. This impairment prevents the patient from working in the kitchen. The purpose of the study was to improve the range of motion and grip strength of her affected hand as she has to resume her work as soon as possible. Case description: A 30-year old female who is a kitchen worker has been complaining of pain, and weakness in her left hand was advised to have wrist surgery after the patient's investigations revealed that she had Kienbock's disease. The patient underwent proximal carpectomy of the wrist and was referred to physiotherapy after the sutures were removed. The patient initially complained of pain at the suture site and difficulty moving her left hand.Early physiotherapy was given to the reduce pain, improve the strength of the wrist and finger flexor extensors, improve the range of motion, and vocational rehabilitation to resume her work.