Page 17 - 2021 Summer CMTA Report

tiny muscles, which lie deep within
the hand. She also suggested
touching your thumb to the bottom
of your pinky, if possible, and doing
a “prayer stretch” for the wrist flex-
ors, which stretches out the muscles
down the arm that tend to get tight
when the hands start to weaken.
Splinting is another area where
A ROCKER KNIFE SIMPLIFIES CHOPPING.
www.amazon.com/Amco-Stainless-Mezzaluna- occupational therapists specialize.
Silicone-Handle/dp/B000Y52CIO/ The most common splint for CMT is
a thumb spica splint, either off-the-
board with prongs holds vegetables shelf or custom, which can prevent
in place for cutting. At work, a deformity and help support the
keyguard over the keyboard can thumb. A dorsal blocking splint
prevent you from accidentally hitting can be used when all of the hand Valery Hanks is an occupational
two keys at once and a color-coded muscles are atrophied and the
keyboard with larger keys can help fingers curl into a claw: It prevents therapist at Pi Beta Phi Rehabilitation
Institute at Vanderbilt Medical Center
prevent mistakes when typing. hyperextension while still allowing Bill Wilkerson Center in Nashville,
Hanks suggested using yoga bands the use of the hand. The goal is to Tennessee. She provides outpatient
prevent deformity from happening.
for hand stretches. Equipment When deformity has occurred, services as part of an interdisciplinary
isn’t a necessity for hand stretch- progressive splinting can help. New team for adolescents and adults with
es, though: Simply spreading the splints are made every six weeks neurological impairments. Valery
fingers out as wide as possible and or so that gradually ease the hands graduated from the University of
then pulling them back together is into a more stretched position. Tennessee Health Sciences Center
an excellent way to keep the intrin- in 2000 and has focused her entire
sic muscles of the hand firing. Mak- To watch the entire Zoom, go to career on helping people with
ing a “duck beak” also fires these www.cmtausa.org/webinars/ neurological impairments.

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SUMMER 2021 THE CMTA REPORT