Hand, arm and shoulder
Most children don’t think twice about gripping a pen, throwing a ball or reaching up high. But for a child born with a congenital hand difference, upper limb deficiency or brachial plexus birth palsy, such everyday tasks can pose big challenges. The expert orthopaedic team at Shriners Hospitals for Children — Northern California provides the complex, compassionate care every child deserves. The medical team works to advance the lives of children through leading-edge surgical care, therapy and research.
Hand, arm and shoulder orthopaedic conditions treated include:
- Adactyly
- Amniotic band syndrome/constriction bands
- Cleft hand/central deficiency/ectrodactyly
- Congenital amputation (transverse deficiency)
- Congenital radial head dislocation
- Polydactyly
- Proximal radio-ulnar synostosis
- Radius deficiency
- Symbrachydactyly
- Syndactyly
- Thumb deficiency
- Ulnar deficiency
Traumatic injuries
- Fracture follow-up
- Nerve and tendon injuries
- Post-traumatic deformities
Neuromuscular conditions
- Arthrogryposis
- Brachial plexus birth palsy
- Cerebral palsy
- Spinal cord injury
Orthopaedic research
Led by Dr. Michelle James, the orthopaedic clinical research program is comprised of a multidisciplinary team of physicians, therapists, bio-mechanical engineers and clinical research professionals, focusing on research pertaining to children’s hand and arm function. Current research projects include:
- Motion analysis studies of children’s thumbs, elbows and shoulders
- Development and evaluation of a smartphone application to test hand function in preschoolers
- Studies of hand function in several conditions including cerebral palsy and symbrachydactyly
- Development of pediatric elbow function evaluation tool
- Long term follow-up studies of children with brachial plexus birth palsy