Motoring with the Ulnar Nerve

Posted on July 26, 2010 in Neurology Video

The physical therapist has me doing the most absurd-looking exercises. The latest one involves the very last joint on my ring finger. Holding my knuckle rigid, I bend the last joint. We began doing this because I noticed a stiffness in the joint.

Many of my exercises are the result of discoveries such as this. When I first visited, we noted some loss of motor ability in the little finger on the left hand. When I held the hand flat, spread the fingers, and closed them again, the pinky was slow to join the others. A few days of exercise using a rubber band relieved this. I am not seeing the ring finger spring back so readily and I am wondering if there is damage to that finger which has nothing to do with the nerve. If I bend it, there’s stiffness between the distal joint and the knuckle.

An especial torture is the Purdue Peg Board. A set of long rods, washers, and short tubes must be arranged in a series of holes. It was a struggle to do five holes when I started: now I am up to thirty.

The hand continues to improve except for this small detail. Some days it tingles. Today, while the numbness is still there — especially in the ring finger — the numbness is less noticeable.

One theory for my condition is that I’ve leaned a lot on the elbow. Every night I take my place in the big red retro chair in the living room and put my weight on the left elbow. I do this less when I sit in the office chair. It’s a common effect that afflicts truck drivers who lean on the window until their ulnar nerve balks and gives up its motor abilities.

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