Arthritis—which literally means “inflamed joint”—can affect any joint in the body, including the joints between the 29 bones of the wrist, hand, and fingers. Arthritis of the hand can hurt and keep you from being able to do what you want or need to do.

The olecranon is the pointy bone at the tip of the elbow. The bursa is the thin sac of fluid that lies between this boney tip and the skin. It helps the skin slide over the bone smoothly. Normally, this sac has only a tiny bit of fluid inside of it and lays flat. However, the bursa can become irritated or inflamed and fill with extra fluid. When this happens, a painful swelling develops at the back of the elbow. This swelling is olecranon bursitis.

Carpal tunnel syndrome is a common condition with numbness in hands. However, it is not the only cause of hand numbness.

Nerves are the body’s “telephone wiring” system that carries messages between the brain and the rest of the body. Some nerves carry messages from the brain to muscles to make the body move. Other nerves carry messages about pain, pressure, or temperature from the body to the brain.

Nerve repair is required after a nerve is injured in such a way that it will not recover on its own. Nerves are bundles of fibers that carry messages between the brain and the rest of the body.

A nail bed injury can be very painful and prevent you from using your fingers; however, these injuries are treatable.

Hand bones are called metacarpals. The finger bones are called phalanges. The metacarpophalangeal joint (MCP joint), or knuckle, is where the finger bones meet the hand bones. At the MCP joint, the fingers can move in multiple directions.

A mallet finger is a deformity of the finger. It occurs when the tendon that straightens the finger (the extensor tendon) is damaged at the fingertip.

In a joint replacement, the abnormal structures of the joint are removed and replaced. These structures are bone, cartilage, and synovium.

Kienbock’s disease is also known as avascular necrosis (AVN) of the lunate. The lunate is one of the eight small bones in the wrist. In this condition, the lunate bone loses its blood supply, leading to death of the bone.