Prevailing Treatment Approaches in The Management of Musculoskeletal Conditions of The Wrist and ‎Hand: A Review

  • Authors

    • Om Wadhokar Assistant Professor, Department of Musculoskeletal Sciences, Dr. D.Y. Patil College of Physiotherapy, Dr. D. Y. Patil Vidyapeeth, Pimpri, Pune, Maharashtra, India and Ph.D Scholar, Department of Public Health, Jawaharlal Nehru Medical College, Datta Meghe Institute of Higher Education and Research, Sawangi(M), Wardha, Maharashtra, India
    • Seema Saini Professor, Department of Musculoskeletal Sciences, Dr. D.Y. Patil College of Physiotherapy, Dr. D. Y. Patil Vidyapeeth, Pimpri, Pune, Maharashtra, India
    • Jayantika Bhardwaj Resident, Department of Musculoskeletal Sciences, Dr. D.Y. Patil College of Physiotherapy, Dr. D. Y. Patil Vidyapeeth, Pimpri, Pune, Maharashtra, India
    • Vanshika Tandon Resident, Department of Musculoskeletal Sciences, Dr. D.Y. Patil College of Physiotherapy, Dr. D. Y. Patil Vidyapeeth, Pimpri, Pune, Maharashtra, India
    • Sakshi Yede Resident, Department of Musculoskeletal Sciences, Dr. D.Y. Patil College of Physiotherapy, Dr. D. Y. Patil Vidyapeeth, Pimpri, Pune, Maharashtra, India
    • Tushar Palekar Professor, Department of Musculoskeletal Sciences, Dr. D.Y. Patil College of Physiotherapy, Dr. D. Y. Patil Vidyapeeth, Pimpri, Pune, Maharashtra, India
    https://doi.org/10.14419/yfrhzj79

    Received date: March 29, 2025

    Accepted date: April 30, 2025

    Published date: July 30, 2025

  • Virtual Reality; Wrist and Hand Conditions; Musculoskeletal Disorders; Physiotherapy;‎Rehabilitation; Review Article

  • Abstract

    Background: Wrist and hand musculoskeletal conditions, including fractures, tendon ‎injuries, and arthritis, significantly impact an individual's ability to perform daily tasks. ‎Traditional physiotherapy, though effective, often faces challenges like patient non-‎compliance due to repetitive exercises and lengthy recovery periods. The review aims to ‎identify the prevailing treatment approach for the management of individuals with ‎musculoskeletal conditions of the wrist and hand.‎

    Objective: This review explores recent prevailing devices in physiotherapy treatment for wrist ‎and hand musculoskeletal conditions.‎

    Methods: An extensive literature search was conducted among Scopus, Web of Science, ‎and PubMed databases. The keywords used for the search included "wrist rehabilitation," ‎‎"hand musculoskeletal conditions," "virtual reality in physiotherapy," "robotic rehabilitation ‎devices," "wearable technology in rehabilitation," "blood flow restriction therapy," "mirror ‎neurons therapy," and "advanced physiotherapy techniques." Boolean operators (AND, OR) ‎were used to refine the search results and ensure comprehensive coverage. The articles ‎included were from the year 2019 to October 2025. Data from various studies were extracted ‎and analyzed to understand how these innovations improve patient outcomes compared to ‎conventional physiotherapy.‎

    Results:  The review found that emerging approaches like virtual reality, robotic-assisted ‎devices, and wearable devices offer engaging, personalized, and efficient rehabilitation ‎solutions that improve patient adherence and accelerate recovery by providing an immersive ‎virtual gaming scenario wherein the individuals actively participate and improve the ‎functionality of the affected limb. However, the long-term efficacy and accessibility of these ‎approaches still require further investigation.‎

    Conclusion: Advanced physiotherapy approaches like virtual reality have the potential to ‎improve wrist and hand rehabilitation, offering better outcomes for patients. Active ‎participation from the patient and motivation played an important role in regaining  ‎functionality. Integration of the prevailing rehabilitative approach will improve the adherence of ‎the patient with the treatment, and better outcomes are achieved using virtual reality and ‎Blood flow restriction therapy. Whereas other treatment approaches are proven to be ‎effective, but to due high cost and continuous supervision sometimes make it less feasible as ‎compared to the other treatment options‎.

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  • How to Cite

    Wadhokar, O., Saini, S., Bhardwaj, J., Tandon, V. ., Yede, S., & Palekar , T. . (2025). Prevailing Treatment Approaches in The Management of Musculoskeletal Conditions of The Wrist and ‎Hand: A Review. International Journal of Basic and Applied Sciences, 14(3), 439-445. https://doi.org/10.14419/yfrhzj79