Episode 14: Chuck and Chris discuss Chris' 2020 JBJS review on the hand surgery literature for 2019.  This is Part I of II with a discussion of thumb CMC arthritis and distal radius fractures, among other topics.

Because of the crazy times, we also give some COVID-19 updates.  

theupperhandpodcast.wustl.edu

And, in these stressful times, I always recommend more @iampetermartin- jazz piano relaxation.

Chris and Chuck review the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on our community and our practices, our training program, and we share some of the adjustments that have been made.  We recognize the rapid pace of change and the variability from community to community, state to state, and country to country.  

Episode 11 evaluates 7 clinical pearls that Chuck and Chris use to maximize their practice efficiency.  We hope that our discussion of these tips and tricks provide something for you to consider in your own practice.  Really this is Chuck and Chris sharing some of our favorite pearls that we believe make us better hand surgeons (and give us more time for the personal and non- clinical work activities).  And, of course, we hope that our thoughts generate discussion and feedback on twitter @handPodcast or via email.  Thanks as always to @iampetermartin for the tunes.

Our first guest on the Upper Hand Podcast is the Journal of Hand Surgery Editor in Chief, Brent Graham.  We learn about Dr. Graham's training, career, and path to Editor.  We learn more about Dr. Graham's insights into the world of hand surgery and journal editing.  Dr. Graham also hosts a podcast for the Journal of Hand Surgery, so he is no stranger to this medium.   As always, thanks to @iampetermartin for the amazing music.

Episode 10.
7 Wack Gigs explores what we can learn when surgeries don't go quite like we planned.  
Wack definition- "bad, messed up". 
Gig definition- "live musical performance'

We are indebted to @iampetermartin for both his music and the concept of exploring this concept.  We evaluate what we can learn when surgeries veer off the planned path.  We share 7 lessons that Chuck and Chris have learned in this podcast.

In Scaphoid 2, we discuss our most common strategies for operative management, including when and how to go dorsal vs volar, when and how we like to use bone graft, and when angular correction is needed. We review our postoperative protocols for immobilization, therapy, and return to activity.  Technical pearls shared.  Thank you to @iampetermartin for his musical contribution.

Scaphoid 1.  In this episode, we discuss the diagnosis of scaphoid fractures including the role of advanced imaging.  We then discuss our approaches on the operative and nonoperative care including patient counseling.  In this episode, we focus our operative discussion on the dorsal approach including tips and technical tricks for the surgical approach.  Thanks to @iamPeterMartin for the amazing music.

Chris and I talk about the technical aspects of carpal tunnel surgery including our approach, open versus endoscopic, and other controversies.  Thanks to @IamPeterMartin for the amazing jazz piano.

We talk about one of the most common diagnoses in any upper extremity surgeon's practice- carpal tunnel syndrome.  This episode is mostly about our approach to the patient and the steps we take in assessing the patient and making a diagnosis.  We review important considerations such as: key patient complaints, which diagnostic tests help most, and how we use steroid injections.  Thanks to @IamPeterMartin for the amazing jazz piano.

We discuss our general approach to metacarpal fractures, which were recently in the news due to Steph Curry’s injury. We talk through our decision tree, how we treat non-operatively, how we treat surgically, and return to activity/play considerations.