Brian wrote:
Silly question of the day: can a non-medical ultrasound scanner be
used on the hand (a) safely and (b) with any sort of readable picture?

Reason for silly question - I'm a beginner guitar player and was
attempting quite a stretch on the fretboard when I injured my hand.
I've got surface numbness in the area defined in blue in this picture
http://i137.photobucket.com/albums/q...kdoo/hand1.jpg but I'm
convinced I've also torn the muscle (or something) deeper under there
because some movements and some hand positions (not specifically
guitar but just everyday things such as opening the car door or
lifting a pan) bring on a very sharp pain there.

I've got an appointment to see a physiotherapist (because I could get
in quicker there than the doctors) but if she does suspect torn
muscle, no doubt she'll refer me to the docs, who will refer me to
the hossy for an ultrasound scan, which could all take months, and
then another long wait for treatment.

I can't afford to pay privately for an ultrasound scan (a friend has
just had a shoulder scanned for suspected torn tendon and it was
£400) so I was just sat here idly thinking and I remembered that a
friend of a friend is a keen fisherman and has a 'fish finder'
thingy, which I believe, works by ultrasound - could it give us
something viable that I could take to the doc? Is it even safe to
try? And while I've been typing this, I've remembered that a friend's
daughter works on a maternity ward at our local hossy; wonder if she
could scan my hand? Hmm, may be worth asking her :-)

Well guys, thanks for all the help and suggestions. I've now seen the
physiotherapist who did some tests, specifically the Tinel and Phalen tests,
both of which proved positive and she diagnosed Carpal Tunnel Syndrome. It's
not very advanced yet but she thinks that it's too far advanced to blame it
on the short time I've been playing guitar and that it must have started
sooner. So, she's recommended two weeks rest from the guitar and given me
some stretching and strengthening exercises to do and we'll see how we go
from there.

Thanks again
Brian

dave wrote:
On Thu, 5 May 2011 19:15:18 +0100, "Brian" wrote:

Brian wrote:
Silly question of the day: can a non-medical ultrasound scanner be
used on the hand (a) safely and (b) with any sort of readable
picture?

Reason for silly question - I'm a beginner guitar player and was
attempting quite a stretch on the fretboard when I injured my hand.
I've got surface numbness in the area defined in blue in this
picture http://i137.photobucket.com/albums/q...kdoo/hand1.jpg
but I'm convinced I've also torn the muscle (or something) deeper
under there because some movements and some hand positions (not
specifically guitar but just everyday things such as opening the
car door or lifting a pan) bring on a very sharp pain there.

I've got an appointment to see a physiotherapist (because I could
get in quicker there than the doctors) but if she does suspect torn
muscle, no doubt she'll refer me to the docs, who will refer me to
the hossy for an ultrasound scan, which could all take months, and
then another long wait for treatment.

I can't afford to pay privately for an ultrasound scan (a friend has
just had a shoulder scanned for suspected torn tendon and it was
£400) so I was just sat here idly thinking and I remembered that a
friend of a friend is a keen fisherman and has a 'fish finder'
thingy, which I believe, works by ultrasound - could it give us
something viable that I could take to the doc? Is it even safe to
try? And while I've been typing this, I've remembered that a
friend's daughter works on a maternity ward at our local hossy;
wonder if she could scan my hand? Hmm, may be worth asking her :-)

Well guys, thanks for all the help and suggestions. I've now seen the
physiotherapist who did some tests, specifically the Tinel and
Phalen tests, both of which proved positive and she diagnosed Carpal
Tunnel Syndrome. It's not very advanced yet but she thinks that it's
too far advanced to blame it on the short time I've been playing
guitar and that it must have started sooner. So, she's recommended
two weeks rest from the guitar and given me some stretching and
strengthening exercises to do and we'll see how we go from there.

Thanks again
Brian


Hope you get fixed up soon. I think even if you can diy the ultrasound
it probably needs a specialist to interpret the result.

Thanks Dave. My sister-in-law is a (senior or superintendent? I can never
remember - anyway, one step below consultant) radiographer but lives over
300 miles away. If I could have got a useable picture I could have emailed
it to her for her interpretation.

Just out of interest - what was the stretch you attempted on the
guitar? I take it is classical guitar you are starting?

Nah, picked up a secondhand Fender Squier Stratocaster and a Marshall
MG30DFX amp for £95 :-) The stretch was index finger on 2nd fret, ring
finger 4th fret and pinky 5th fret. I hope that it can be sorted - I don't
think I'll ever be another Jimmy Page or Paul Kossoff but I don't want my
guitar playing to be over before it's even been started :-)

In message , Brian
writes
dave wrote:
On Thu, 5 May 2011 19:15:18 +0100, "Brian" wrote:

Brian wrote:
Silly question of the day: can a non-medical ultrasound scanner be
used on the hand (a) safely and (b) with any sort of readable
picture?

Reason for silly question - I'm a beginner guitar player and was
attempting quite a stretch on the fretboard when I injured my hand.
I've got surface numbness in the area defined in blue in this
picture http://i137.photobucket.com/albums/q...kdoo/hand1.jpg
but I'm convinced I've also torn the muscle (or something) deeper
under there because some movements and some hand positions (not
specifically guitar but just everyday things such as opening the
car door or lifting a pan) bring on a very sharp pain there.

I've got an appointment to see a physiotherapist (because I could
get in quicker there than the doctors) but if she does suspect torn
muscle, no doubt she'll refer me to the docs, who will refer me to
the hossy for an ultrasound scan, which could all take months, and
then another long wait for treatment.

I can't afford to pay privately for an ultrasound scan (a friend has
just had a shoulder scanned for suspected torn tendon and it was
£400) so I was just sat here idly thinking and I remembered that a
friend of a friend is a keen fisherman and has a 'fish finder'
thingy, which I believe, works by ultrasound - could it give us
something viable that I could take to the doc? Is it even safe to
try? And while I've been typing this, I've remembered that a
friend's daughter works on a maternity ward at our local hossy;
wonder if she could scan my hand? Hmm, may be worth asking her :-)

Well guys, thanks for all the help and suggestions. I've now seen the
physiotherapist who did some tests, specifically the Tinel and
Phalen tests, both of which proved positive and she diagnosed Carpal
Tunnel Syndrome. It's not very advanced yet but she thinks that it's
too far advanced to blame it on the short time I've been playing
guitar and that it must have started sooner. So, she's recommended
two weeks rest from the guitar and given me some stretching and
strengthening exercises to do and we'll see how we go from there.

Thanks again
Brian


Hope you get fixed up soon. I think even if you can diy the ultrasound
it probably needs a specialist to interpret the result.

Thanks Dave. My sister-in-law is a (senior or superintendent? I can never
remember - anyway, one step below consultant) radiographer but lives over
300 miles away. If I could have got a useable picture I could have emailed
it to her for her interpretation.

Just out of interest - what was the stretch you attempted on the
guitar? I take it is classical guitar you are starting?

Nah, picked up a secondhand Fender Squier Stratocaster and a Marshall
MG30DFX amp for £95 :-) The stretch was index finger on 2nd fret, ring
finger 4th fret and pinky 5th fret.

A gnats under 10cm ...
If you can't stretch that far without problems, maybe you have some
other underlying problem

I hope that it can be sorted - I don't
think I'll ever be another Jimmy Page or Paul Kossoff but I don't want my
guitar playing to be over before it's even been started :-)


Maybe some warming up exercises before you start


--
geoff

geoff wrote:
In message , Brian
writes
dave wrote:
On Thu, 5 May 2011 19:15:18 +0100, "Brian" wrote:

Brian wrote:
Silly question of the day: can a non-medical ultrasound scanner be
used on the hand (a) safely and (b) with any sort of readable
picture?

Reason for silly question - I'm a beginner guitar player and was
attempting quite a stretch on the fretboard when I injured my
hand. I've got surface numbness in the area defined in blue in
this picture
http://i137.photobucket.com/albums/q...kdoo/hand1.jpg but I'm
convinced I've also torn the muscle (or something) deeper under
there because some movements and some hand positions (not
specifically guitar but just everyday things such as opening the
car door or lifting a pan) bring on a very sharp pain there. I've got
an appointment to see a physiotherapist (because I could
get in quicker there than the doctors) but if she does suspect
torn muscle, no doubt she'll refer me to the docs, who will refer
me to the hossy for an ultrasound scan, which could all take
months, and then another long wait for treatment.

I can't afford to pay privately for an ultrasound scan (a friend
has just had a shoulder scanned for suspected torn tendon and it
was £400) so I was just sat here idly thinking and I remembered
that a friend of a friend is a keen fisherman and has a 'fish
finder' thingy, which I believe, works by ultrasound - could it
give us something viable that I could take to the doc? Is it even
safe to try? And while I've been typing this, I've remembered
that a friend's daughter works on a maternity ward at our local
hossy; wonder if she could scan my hand? Hmm, may be worth asking
her :-)

Well guys, thanks for all the help and suggestions. I've now seen
the physiotherapist who did some tests, specifically the Tinel and
Phalen tests, both of which proved positive and she diagnosed
Carpal Tunnel Syndrome. It's not very advanced yet but she thinks
that it's too far advanced to blame it on the short time I've been
playing guitar and that it must have started sooner. So, she's
recommended two weeks rest from the guitar and given me some
stretching and strengthening exercises to do and we'll see how we
go from there. Thanks again
Brian


Hope you get fixed up soon. I think even if you can diy the
ultrasound it probably needs a specialist to interpret the result.

Thanks Dave. My sister-in-law is a (senior or superintendent? I can
never remember - anyway, one step below consultant) radiographer but
lives over 300 miles away. If I could have got a useable picture I
could have emailed it to her for her interpretation.

Just out of interest - what was the stretch you attempted on the
guitar? I take it is classical guitar you are starting?

Nah, picked up a secondhand Fender Squier Stratocaster and a Marshall
MG30DFX amp for £95 :-) The stretch was index finger on 2nd fret,
ring finger 4th fret and pinky 5th fret.

A gnats under 10cm ...
If you can't stretch that far without problems, maybe you have some
other underlying problem

Quite possible Geoff. I did fall on my wrist causing some damage in my late
teens (now in my 50's) but I thought it had healed quite well, although it
has to be said that there aren't many situations in my normal day-to-day
life that put my wrist/hand/fingers in positions that the guitar requires,
so maybe the problem has alweays been there but just never ('activated'?)
noticed before.

I hope that it can be sorted - I don't
think I'll ever be another Jimmy Page or Paul Kossoff but I don't
want my guitar playing to be over before it's even been started :-)


Maybe some warming up exercises before you start

A very good idea and one that the physio also recommended :-)

In message , Brian
writes
Just out of interest - what was the stretch you attempted on the
guitar? I take it is classical guitar you are starting?

Nah, picked up a secondhand Fender Squier Stratocaster and a Marshall
MG30DFX amp for £95 :-) The stretch was index finger on 2nd fret,
ring finger 4th fret and pinky 5th fret.

A gnats under 10cm ...
If you can't stretch that far without problems, maybe you have some
other underlying problem

Quite possible Geoff. I did fall on my wrist causing some damage in my late
teens (now in my 50's) but I thought it had healed quite well, although it
has to be said that there aren't many situations in my normal day-to-day
life that put my wrist/hand/fingers in positions that the guitar requires,
so maybe the problem has alweays been there but just never ('activated'?)
noticed before.

Maybe you need to start off with the guitar angled a bit more to the
floor, so that there is less general tension in the forearm - which is,
of course a bit of a bugger if you are trying to see where those little
pinkies are on the fretboard


I hope that it can be sorted - I don't
think I'll ever be another Jimmy Page or Paul Kossoff but I don't
want my guitar playing to be over before it's even been started :-)


Maybe some warming up exercises before you start

A very good idea and one that the physio also recommended :-)



Make a barred e chord and move your little finger on the third fret
above from the first to the sixth string and back again repeatedly

don't strum at the same time unless you want to annoy the neighbours


--
geoff

geoff wrote:
In message , Brian
writes
Just out of interest - what was the stretch you attempted on the
guitar? I take it is classical guitar you are starting?

Nah, picked up a secondhand Fender Squier Stratocaster and a
Marshall MG30DFX amp for £95 :-) The stretch was index finger on
2nd fret, ring finger 4th fret and pinky 5th fret.

A gnats under 10cm ...
If you can't stretch that far without problems, maybe you have some
other underlying problem

Quite possible Geoff. I did fall on my wrist causing some damage in
my late teens (now in my 50's) but I thought it had healed quite
well, although it has to be said that there aren't many situations
in my normal day-to-day life that put my wrist/hand/fingers in
positions that the guitar requires, so maybe the problem has alweays
been there but just never ('activated'?) noticed before.

Maybe you need to start off with the guitar angled a bit more to the
floor, so that there is less general tension in the forearm - which
is, of course a bit of a bugger if you are trying to see where those
little pinkies are on the fretboard

That is the greatest problem as a beginner because I do need to see where my
fingers are, for now at least.

I hope that it can be sorted - I don't
think I'll ever be another Jimmy Page or Paul Kossoff but I don't
want my guitar playing to be over before it's even been started :-)
Maybe some warming up exercises before you start

A very good idea and one that the physio also recommended :-)



Make a barred e chord and move your little finger on the third fret
above from the first to the sixth string and back again repeatedly

don't strum at the same time unless you want to annoy the neighbours

Thank you sir, I'll do that. I've got a set of headphones, specifically to
avoid upsetting the neighbours :-)

Brian wrote:
Thanks Dave. My sister-in-law is a (senior or superintendent? I can never
remember - anyway, one step below consultant) radiographer but lives over
300 miles away. If I could have got a useable picture I could have emailed
it to her for her interpretation.

AFAIK ultrasound is a bit different from an X-ray. An X-ray is like a
camera: you lie on the table, take a picture, then the consultant stares at
it for a while to work out what's up. Ultrasound is an interactive
procedu the operator wiggles the probe around until they can see the
feature they want to see - and can see dynamic features (like blood flow
changes or a baby's heart beating). Just taking an ultrasound 'picture'
isn't so helpful for interpretation.

Theo