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Ulnar nerve surgery success?

Stu QSX15 · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Mar 2012 · Points: 0

Had forgotten about the post. I am now 6 months post op for both elbows and have had a full recovery. I was very surprised at the length of recovery and there was certainly some discomfort for several weeks after the op. I had a lot of trouble with pain in my forearms and shadow pain in the elbows. i went to see a massage therapist who suggested a cleanse, magnesium and tissue salts. He maintained my ph level was way out and needed to be corrected for the muscle tissue to be able to repair. I followed his advice and the muscular pain in the forearms was gone within days. I have been quite diligent in slowly building up my strength through static weights through to swimming. The surgery has definitely been worth while having as I am now almost back to the fitness and strength I had 10 years ago. There is still discomfort in my elbows and some odd nerve stuff in one of my hands but nothing compared to pre-op. Don't go into the surgery expecting to walk out and hit the gym in two weeks. it will take months to get back on track but with the right post op care life should be much better.

David B · · Denver, CO · Joined Apr 2011 · Points: 205

I have had ulnar nerve issues in my left arm for 5 months now. I only have moderate numbness in my pinky and ring finger, no pain as of yet, slight weakness if any. I've been to PT and they gave me a brace to wear and nerve gliding exercises to do.

Did anyone else have numbness which eventually progressed to pain? Or numbness which eventually went away? My symptoms don't seem to be getting better or worse.

C Scariot · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Jan 2006 · Points: 0

I only had numbness and weakness. never turned into a pain issue w/ the ulnar nerve.

David B · · Denver, CO · Joined Apr 2011 · Points: 205

Thanks. As of now, I'm only about 10% weaker in my left hand, which could be attributed to being right-handed. It hasn't gotten any worse in 5 months, only the numbness.

ErikaNW · · Golden, CO · Joined Sep 2010 · Points: 410

My initial injury happened 10 years before I had surgery. The ulnar nerve issue never progressed to pain either, and the numbness itself didn't bother me all that much. If I hadn't had other injuries to deal with that were painful and impacting my daily function I might not have dealt with the ulnar nerve at all.

However after 10 years, I had a lot of muscle wasting in the intrinsic muscles of my hand that happened so gradually I never really noticed it. I had a nerve conduction study that showed the motor function of the nerve was being affected as well as the sensory portion. I probably won't regain that, but surgery was necessary to keep it from progressing further. That hand is about 80% on power grip and 50% on pinch grip compared to my other hand.

Have your PT check your grip and pinch strength if they haven't already, and also check the hypothenar eminence (pinky side of the palm) and the 1st dorsal interossei muscle (back side of your hand, squeeze the thumb into the first finger, it is the muscle that pops out) for flattening/wasting compared to your hand. Ulnar nerve glides are great also.

Good luck!

David B · · Denver, CO · Joined Apr 2011 · Points: 205

Thanks! PT wants to do strengthening exercises, but I don't know how it would help considering the nerve is still affected. I feel like I'm wasting my time/money at this point, and I should just get one of those grip testers and keep track of it over time. And continue with the nerve glides, stretches, and brace. I'm meeting with the surgeon again in a month.

Burrish · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Feb 2015 · Points: 0

I need to start by saying that I'm not a climber, though I admire all of you who are! That said, I'm an actively performing drummer, so I think my experience might be helpful in general. In 2009, my surgeon performed in-situ decompression on both of my elbows at the same time. In-situ Decompression is the easiest procedure on the list, and the recovery is much faster. The nerve is kept in place (hence "in situ"), and the incisions are only about an inch in length. I had the nerve conduction tests done before the surgery and it definitely showed a decrease in activity of the nerve, which apparently manifests itself by hurting more during the test jolts. (not pleasant!) Before the surgery, I had light tingling and numbness and the pain was more on the dull side - in the 2-3 range. My grip was still pretty solid, so I didn't experience some of the weakening that I've read, here. My main activities were the aforementioned drumming, medium-weight exercise, and I also spent a ton of time behind the computer typing, programming and gaming. I know that my posture at the PC wasn't the best during that time, which was undoubtedly a factor. I lived in the Dallas area at the time (in SoCal, now), and my surgeon, who is a renowned plastic surgeon in that area, recommended the in-situ procedure since my pain/numbness wasn't severe. I, of course, agreed with him, as the least invasive surgery is the way to go, if possible. My post-op pain wasn't that severe, and I didn't have to take the pain meds for long. He recommended that I do some light drumming as therapy, and I was doing that within two weeks. I also went to physical therapy, which was somewhat helpful. Yes, the dull pain was basically still there, but doing activities didn't cause *lasting* pain, which is key. ...fast-forward, six years. Unfortunately, in the past two years, doing any sort of moderate/heavy activity has caused both elbows to become sore for days. If I drum lightly, as in an acoustic/jazz show, the pain is *tolerable*, though still troubling. A full-on Rock/Backbeat show isn't an option at this point, which is extremely frustrating. My exercise routine only involves very light dumbbells, which is good enough I suppose, but I haven't done it in a couple of months, as I can really only do drumming *or* light-lifting; stacking them just compounds the pain. Here's the thing: since the elbow is the point of compression, I wonder if getting a transposition would have been best since I'm an active person. Yes, cutting the tissue around the Ulnar Nerve definitely relieved some pressure and was helpful, but this procedure seems best suited to those who aren't actively involved in many activities. Then again, as I mentioned before, my downtime was minimal, so I'm sure my surgeon was doing what he felt was in my best interests all around, and I truly am grateful and would recommend him to anyone in that area. I've been searching well-respected Ortho docs in my area, and it seems as though people consistently recommend pro-sports-team doctors. I'll be looking into that for sure, though my insurance likely isn't accepted. I'll pay the money to have it done, right; that's for certain! Anyway, I'm glad I found this thread and I hope this is somewhat helpful. All the best to all of you, and I hope you're all able to get back to your best climbing, soon! - B

john strand · · southern colo · Joined May 2008 · Points: 1,640

I had the surgery 12 days ago, bandages are off and I got the green light for all activities. Ulnar was way compressed and arthritis junk all around.

Doc was very happy,,so I'm very happy.

Burrish · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Feb 2015 · Points: 0
john strand wrote:I had the surgery 12 days ago, bandages are off and I got the green light for all activities. Ulnar was way compressed and arthritis junk all around. Doc was very happy,,so I'm very happy.
Which type of surgery did you have, John? I'm going to assume it was In-Situ...
Burrish · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Feb 2015 · Points: 0

So I had it done about year ago on my left elbow after years of pain. I still dont have full feeling my pinky and it still hurts when I go climbing, and the motorcycle really makes it feel unhappy. BUT When I get on something really hard and I flame out my left elbow (transpositioned one) seems to recover in a few hours, the right elbow which has not undergone surgery will hurt for days. Seems like you trade climbing grip strength for pushing grip strength with the surgery. What you said after "BUT" is *exactly* the kind of feedback I've always wanted to know. Personally, when I do any sort of strenuous activity, I don't immediately feel nerve pain. My elbows "tell" me that I've done something, but the pain/soreness doesn't start until hours later. If getting the nerve transposed cuts down the post-activity pain level and keeps the nerve from stretching, I'm all for it. Extrablue, which surgery did you have?

john strand · · southern colo · Joined May 2008 · Points: 1,640

Right..the Doc really didn't want to do transport. My main problem was the arthritis tophi and them pressing the nerve flat.
The pain and numbness went up to the shoulder

I just pm'd you

john strand · · southern colo · Joined May 2008 · Points: 1,640

2 weeks post op and I did a couple of pull ups along with swimming. No issues ex cept some tightness at the incision site.

Hoping for some easy climbing when the snow stops

Andy29 · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Apr 2015 · Points: 0

Hi guys. Non-mountain climber here, but I had similar symptoms to most of you and wanted to tell my story to help others out. After having had cubital tunnel and golfers elbow symptoms in my right elbow the past 8 years, I finally decided to have "ulnar nerve release" surgery--without having the nerve moved--along with a elbow tendon debridement surgery in June 2013. Results of the surgeries? The burning pain in my elbow is gone. However, I still have symptoms in my hand andI have the added scar tissue from the surgery to deal with(has gotten better with time. But still a nuisance from time to time). So it seems like the golfers elbow surgery worked for me, but not necessarily the nerve release. It could be that I waited to long to get the surgery, however. Perhaps the " ulnar nerve anterior transposition surgery" is preferable, as more of the hand surgeons I saw performed that surgery and not the release. I went the conservative route. Good luck to you.

john strand · · southern colo · Joined May 2008 · Points: 1,640

Well that sucks blue....i have only a bit of tingling after using power tools and no real issues when climbing or using hiking poles.

could there be other nerve/arm issues / medial maybe ???

john strand · · southern colo · Joined May 2008 · Points: 1,640

could be Road Warrior style...maybe time for a Guzzi

ErikaNW · · Golden, CO · Joined Sep 2010 · Points: 410

I had a submuscular transposition 3 years ago - still get numbness occasionally, usually when I overgrip. I think since the nerve is now running underneath the flexor muscle mass the muscles might compress it a little when overworking.

I also ride motorcycles, and I actually went to a bike with a lighter clutch which has helped a lot - I couldn't ride at all the first year after my surgery (I had a whole bunch of work done though - posted earlier in this thread about it). Long days on the bike, or riding in stop and go traffic still irritate it - again, I think it's more of a fatigue/overgripping issue. It bothers me after long days on my road bike (bicycle) as well. I've never regained full strength in that forearm/hand, and won't due to the nerve damage - but it doesn't seem to impact my climbing anymore (mostly because I don't climb very hard!)

Heather Joy · · Unknown Hometown · Joined May 2015 · Points: 0

Hi, I know this is a very old thread, but I'm having my surgery on July 9, 2015 on my Ulna Nerve

john strand · · southern colo · Joined May 2008 · Points: 1,640

Well, good luck is a transposition needed ? That matters a LOT

Mine is fine after 3 months now,,no issues

Linda Salzman · · Unknown Hometown · Joined May 2015 · Points: 0

I had subcutaneous ulnar nerve transposition (after surgery on a fractured elbow from a biking accident) 14 years ago. Two years ago, the tingling, pain and weakness reappeared. It comes and goes (more coming than going) on a routine basis. I don't want to lose the functioning of my arm and am looking for anyone's successful treatment - western medicine or alternative therapies are fine. Thanks for sharing.

john strand · · southern colo · Joined May 2008 · Points: 1,640

Linda - where are you at ?

Guideline #1: Don't be a jerk.

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