Pulleys are part of a system made up of the finger tendon sheath in order to convert linear translation and force in the muscle-tendon into rotation and torque at the finger joints….what?
Think of them as little loops that the finger tendons move through in order to help bend the fingers! You can imagine these will be put under quite a bit of stress when climbing, more than we otherwise have evolved to accept.
The most commonly injured pulley is the A2 pulley on the ring finger - which sits in between the first and second knuckle.
“Help! I think I hurt my pulley! How can I tell?”
Glad you asked! There are a couple of simple ways to point you in the right direction, however, it is by no means a replacement for actual imaging!
- Mechanism of injury
Pulleys are under max stress while crimping and are most at risk when your feet slip off during a hard crimp.
- Where is the pain?
Most pulley injuries will have localized symptoms to the palm side of the finger which is normally tender to the touch
- Which grip does it hurt with?
Is it painful with a crimp and not with an open handed hold?
“All these things are positive! Now what!?”
First and foremost - Stop. Climbing. Sorry! I know that’s not what you want to hear but it’s the truth you need REST!
Second, after the initial rest period, start moving those fingers again!
Thirdly and the most complicated - you need a good progressive loading program in order to rehab the pulley back to full strength, and that’s assuming it wasn’t a full tear.
This is just a quick breakdown of what can come to be a very frustrating injury.
The therapists at Lion PT are more than happy to help guide, educate and guide you through your rehabilitation in order to get you back on the wall as soon and as safely as possible!
If you want to find out more or want to speak to one of our doctors, click below to make an appointment
