Tape dressings
Some sports, such as handball, volleyball or climbing, put a lot of strain on the fingers, including the index finger. They carry the risk of injury or overstretching of the capsule and ligament structures. This is very painful and the recovery can last several weeks, whereby a complete restoration of the initial healthy state is usually not achieved.
To prevent injuries, the fingers, especially the index finger, can be taped. But also already injured fingers can be supported and stabilized with a tape bandage. It should always be ensured that the index finger does not hurt, become numb or thick in the stabilizing position.
For each type of sport the tape bandages can differ in nuances. However, the basic ideas behind them are the same. For acutely injured index fingers, a wide variety of tape bandages are suitable.
In this case it is advisable to consult a physiotherapist or a specialist doctor before trying it, in order not to provoke even more problems. The following text describes how to apply a stabilizing tape bandage to prevent injuries. Ideally a 1.5-2 cm wide tape should be used.
In the first step, a piece of tape is attached around the middle joint of the index finger above and below the joint. The pieces of tape fit around the index finger like two rings, whereby the middle joint has been left out and is still movable. These basic features are called anchors.
Then the two tapered rings are joined together lengthwise and tightly in the area of the middle joint bend with the help of another piece of tape bandage. The length of the longitudinally applied tape bandage should not exceed the length of the ring-shaped bandages applied first. If the desired stability is not achieved, a further piece can be stuck in the same position.
The same applies to the further steps: the more tape strips are applied, the more stable the bandage is. However, it should always be ensured that the taped index finger does not hurt, become numb or swell. If one of these symptoms occurs, the bandage must be removed immediately.
The next step is to apply so-called diagonal pulls. The tape is attached to the lower of the two ring-shaped anchors on the middle side of the finger, starting at the tip of the finger. Then it is led over the longitudinally attached tape upwards and outwards, leaving out the upper joint pole of the middle finger joint again.
Once there, the bandage is pulled down over the upper side of the upper forefinger phalanx and fastened to the lower finger phalanx at the lower anchor. One attaches this bandage piece quasi in the form of an eight. In the last step, two ring-shaped tape bandages are applied above and below the middle joint of the index finger, as in step 1.