Is cracking your knuckles really dangerous? What happens if you snap your fingers? What is the danger of a crunch in the neck?

Many people have been told since childhood that “snapping” their fingers is harmful. Allegedly, this has a bad effect on the joints and as a result leads to various diseases, such as arthritis. However, there is another opinion, according to which crunching can even be beneficial. So how does this habit affect the body and is it worth cracking your joints on purpose? Let's figure it out together with Olga Barbashina

, kinesiotherapy specialist, exercise therapy instructor, sports aerobics trainer and expert at the International Festival of Healthy Lifestyle and Sports SN PRO EXPO FORUM.

Photo: istockphoto.com

Causes of Knott's disease

Often patients do not understand why their fingers click when unclenching their fist and mistake this for normal tissue behavior after tension. However, it is not. Prerequisites for the development of such a disease may be:

• genetic predisposition;
• severe physical stress on the hand, excessive finger tension;
• violation of metabolic processes;
• diseases of the joints and ligaments (arthritis, arthrosis);
• systemic connective tissue diseases;
• hand injuries;
• inflammatory processes.

Knott's disease sometimes occurs in children. In these cases, the causes may be heredity and diseases affecting the connective tissue.

Is the habit of “crunching” your fingers harmful to your health?

Crunching your fingers is a very popular habit. It does not depend on age, gender, standard of living, religion, etc.

Two sides of this habit. Should you believe everything they say?

Many people stretch their fingers before starting work before they start typing on the computer or writing. The next reason is related to the body’s need to stretch when waking up. This is accompanied by a crunch in the joints, which leads to relaxation of the ligaments and a surge of feeling of vigor. Often, when you crack your fingers in public, you immediately hear: “Stop! You’ll break your fingers!” People use phrases like these to argue that this habit is harmful.

Many people believe that it is harmful to health and joints. And if you continue to do this, you will have to treat arthritis

, joint pain, broken bones or something worse. But is this really so? There is an assumption that “snapping” your fingers does not cause harm, but vice versa. But even experienced doctors cannot give an exact answer to this question. Therefore, there are constant discussions on this topic and research is carried out by various specialists, such as:

• Rheumatologists;
• Traumatologists;
• Orthopedists;
• Physiotherapists;
• Psychologists and more.

Medical Research

As stated earlier, some people believe that the habit is completely harmless. To confirm this assumption, experts studied the issue and conducted experiments. One such experiment is the X-ray study in 2011. Approximately two hundred people took part in it.

During the experiment, it was revealed that clicking the limbs cannot cause joint diseases. It depends entirely on other factors. Moreover, if you do not feel pain, you do not have swelling, fever, etc. This crunch is considered normal. In general, it is formed from the accumulation of dissolved gas in the synovial fluid. It is located between the bones and resembles an egg yolk. Its task is to use its consistency to reduce friction between bones.

When the amount of synovial fluid increases in volume, a click is heard. If the interval between such sounds reaches 15-20 minutes and the click is dull, then this is the norm.

Another study was conducted by Doctors of the British Medical Journal and the Western Journal of Medicine. Interestingly, they came to the same conclusion about the safety of the “knuckle cracking” habit.

And the last was an experiment by a doctor from the United States of America, Donald Unger, in 2009. For 60 years he cracked the knuckles of only one left hand. And during this time nothing has changed. By this he wanted to show that this action cannot be the cause of arthritis. For such a long and useful experiment, he received an Ig Nobel Prize.

Can cracking your fingers cause illness?

It would seem that there are so many advantages, but there can’t be any disadvantages? But still, even such a number of successful experiments does not prove absolute benefit. For example, some doctors claim that cracking joints can cause a disease such as a stroke. When we sharply turn our back or neck, the arteries that run along the length of the spine are damaged. Blood passes through them and enters the brain. If this happens, a blood clot will form. And it, in turn, blocks the blood flow to the brain, resulting in the formation of a clot. This is how a person gets a stroke. The likelihood of this happening is extremely low. But it's not worth risking your life. In this case, life does not favor the brave.

Crunching the joints of the legs also carries some danger. They experience a lot of stress, so minor damage to the cartilage quickly leads to often irreparable consequences. If the crunching begins in the joints of the hands, then the prognosis is more positive. A crunch always indicates some kind of problem in the joints and gives a signal that it is time to seek help from a doctor.

Pleasure or health?

Psychologists say that the habit of snapping fingers can be compared to smoking cigarettes, alcoholism and nail biting. Orthopedists say that we hear this sound in tendons and ligaments because, when strongly bent, they overcome resistance and crunch. Scientists from all over Europe, after many experiments, examinations and analyzes, have proven that regular snapping of fingers leads to such consequences as loosening of joints, crushing and damage to cartilage, pinching of adjacent nerves, and continuous dislocations.

And the most important consequence of this habit is considered to be bruised joints, or, in other words, arthritis. The average age at which this problem occurs is 45 years, but gradually this figure began to decrease between the ages of 18 and 25. years. Therefore, it is better not to crack your knuckles too often. In this case, you will have to choose: get temporary pleasure or preserve joints and spinal health.

for a long period.

The source of the urge to snap fingers

There are various reasons why people start cracking their knuckles.

1. Lack of physical activity or its excess;
2. Joint hypermobility;
3. Various pathologies;
4. Kidney failure.

In this case, you should listen to your body. Products that contain large amounts of calcium and phosphorus will be beneficial: fish or dairy products. But fatty foods, on the contrary, will aggravate the situation. It is better to replace it with fruits, vegetables, and baked foods. You should also avoid excessive physical activity, as this can lead to various types of injuries and inflammation.

And if you are still thinking about “crackling” your joints, contact a massage therapist who will help relieve muscle tension, thereby reducing the desire to return to an unhealthy habit.
Author: K.M.N., Academician of the Russian Academy of Medical Sciences M.A. Bobyr

Symptoms of a trigger finger

You can recognize the problem by the following signs (in order of appearance):

• painful sensations at the base of the phalanx of the affected finger, which intensifies with pressure or movement;
• swelling in the affected area and the formation of a compaction that is felt upon palpation;
• difficulty in bending and especially straightening the finger: straightening with a painful sensation and a click, a noticeable delay (you have to make an effort);
• the pain becomes stronger and is felt even at rest;
• inability to straighten the finger with the force of the hand.

As the disease worsens, the symptoms become more pronounced and painful, and normal hand function is disrupted. Therefore, I recommend contacting a competent orthopedic traumatologist at a very early stage.

Methods to combat addiction

Many people are interested in why cracking fingers irritates others and how to stop manipulating them. In most cases, you have to break the habit. To do this, you can use the following methods:

1. Fist rotation. First you need to do several repetitions with your hands, then clench your fingers into a fist.

2. Perform four to five repetitions of the “wave” type exercise, first clasping your fingers.
3. Squeeze all fingers one by one from the little finger to the thumb.
4. Perform scissor exercises for up to ten repetitions.

To maintain healthy bones and joints, it is recommended to eat foods rich in calcium and fiber. It is useful to introduce cartilage and dishes with gelatin and jellied meat into the diet. A bath with a solution of sea salt can be an auxiliary distraction and preventative measure.

Snapping finger - treatment

To treat Nott's disease, both conservative and surgical treatment are used. Let me note right away: conservative treatment does not always help and takes a lot of time. To achieve this, the following measures are applied:

• removing stress from the affected hand;
• ensuring finger immobility;
• physiotherapy;
• taking anti-inflammatory drugs (if the disease develops against the background of inflammatory processes);
• Injections with medications are given locally.

You can start with conservative treatment, but keep in mind that this may be a waste of time. If symptoms still persist after treatment, surgery is prescribed.

Knott's disease surgery is performed under local anesthesia. In this case, the pinching ring of the ligament is dissected - a very delicate job that can only be performed by an experienced orthopedic traumatologist.

After the operation, the function of the finger is restored immediately. The pain disappears. No rehabilitation required. The patient can immediately begin work. As with Dupuytren's contracture, there is a technique for dissecting the annular ligament without the traditional incision and sutures. During this time, the patient is under the supervision of a doctor.

To get more information about Knott's disease (trigger finger), call +7 (905) 640-64-27 or send your questions in a message from the Contacts section.

The benefits of gymnastics

With the help of special and involuntary gymnastics, you can achieve relaxation of the hands after prolonged work at the computer or writing. The following exercises can be included in the complex:

1. Relax and shake your hands.
2. Sharply clench your hands into a fist and slowly relax your hand.
3. Cross your fingers and perform circular movements.
   Read also:  Laboratory examination for rheumatoid arthritis
4. Place your fingers on adjacent ones one by one and repeat several times. The exercise is called "scissors".
5. Squeeze and unclench a rubber ball or tennis ball. It is convenient to use special exercise machines for the hands or expanders.

Exercises can be done at almost any time of the day. An important condition is correct execution. The brushes must be healthy.

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WHERE DOES THIS CRUNCH COME FROM? About the physiology of “crunching joints.”

Surprisingly, the causes of crunching have been discussed in the medical literature since the 1930s, and until today scientists have not reached a consensus.

In 1947, London doctors hypothesized that joints form "empty bladders" that cause the joints to burst during active movement. Between the articular surfaces there is a membrane of synovial fluid, the consistency of which resembles the yolk of a chicken egg. Synovial fluid plays a vital role in the joint - it prevents wear and deformation of the cartilage due to friction. This is a substance that lubricates joints and causes a characteristic noise.

When contact between bones is lost, the lubricant capsule contracts, the pressure of the synovial fluid drops, and the gas dissolved in it is released in the form of bubbles (similar to opening a bottle of champagne or cola). Further studies and x-rays showed that the synovial fluid contains a lot of carbon dioxide and nitrogen, at least 15% by volume. The click is caused by the sudden formation of a gas cavity, which presents the possibility of a sudden increase in the amplitude of the movement producing the sound.

However, using a speed camera, the bubbles were shown to recede 0.01 seconds after they appeared. For a long time, the medical community believed that joint rupture was caused by the collapse of gas bubbles. Since not all gas bubbles collapse, it takes time (about 15 minutes) for them to completely dissolve in the synovial fluid + some time for contact between the articular surfaces (only then can the cavitation effect occur). In particular, when the finger is extended, negative pressure is created in the metacarpophalangeal joint, gas cavities are suddenly formed, which then immediately disappear, generating vibrations that are transmitted to the surrounding tissues.

Advances in technology and the advent of MRI allowed Canadian researchers in 2015 to more accurately answer the question of why a crunching sound can be heard when moving a finger. The working title of the study, “Pull Your Finger,” captures its essence. By developing a special mechanism that gently pulled the subject's finger towards the crunching sound while the hand was in a scanning tomograph at a speed of 3.2 frames per second, it was possible to determine that the sound was caused by a phenomenon that physicists call "tribonucleation".

Cavitation (or tribonucleation) is the formation of small gas cavities in a joint, which can dramatically increase the volume of intra-articular space. When two solid surfaces are immersed in a liquid containing dissolved gas, their joining and separation can result in the formation of small gas bubbles. In engineering, trionucleation is observed in the placenta. In the case of crunchy fingers, the hard surfaces are bones surrounded by synovial fluid that fills the joint cavity.

In each case, the crunching and "rupturing" of the joint was associated with the rapid appearance of a gas-filled cavity, a bubble in the synovial fluid, an extremely slippery substance that lubricates the joints. When the surface of a joint suddenly “spreads”, there is not enough fluid to fill the volume of the joint, creating a void that produces sound.

Scientists compare the behavior of the joint to two wet glass plates placed next to each other, which are extremely difficult to separate because the layer of water between them has strong resistance. Another analogy is the sound made when duct tape peels something off.

To find the answers, the research team needed a "guinea pig" with the talent or gift for cracking his knuckles on demand. It is worth noting that most people who know how to “crunch” cannot always cause crunching in all their fingers several times in a row. On the other hand, in the study, the crunch was recorded on a real-time MRI every 310 milliseconds. Scientists have proven that it is at this moment that bubbles form in the synovial fluid, which cause crunching, and that their collapse occurs silently.

Recommendations

It is important to pay attention to your diet. In order to prevent cell degeneration and inflammatory processes in joints, food should contain foods containing omega-3 acids, antioxidants and gelatin. Seafood, vegetables, fruits, and nuts are considered healthy. You should avoid sugar, foods containing trans fats and processed foods.

You need to learn to distract yourself when you want to crack your fingers. In some cases, regular hand massage helps. If this method does not help, you can move small balls between your fingers or simply pick up a pen.

An excellent option for getting rid of this bad habit is a Rubik's cube, which should always be on hand.

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Diagnostics

In order to find out the reason why your fingers crunch, some diagnostics may be required. At its core, finger crunching is not an independent disease.

It is necessary to seek medical help if the problem becomes more frequent and causes painful symptoms. In order to clarify the picture of what is happening, the following research methods may be needed:

• X-ray.
• MRI.
• Arthroscopic analysis.

Only after receiving all the results does the doctor make a diagnosis and prescribe the correct therapy.