Keira-WitherKay
Learn to Maintain Healthy Hands
When it comes to a musician’s hands, small problems can quickly become big problems. There is no better example of this than the issue of cracked fingertips. Neurodermatitis is the medical term for it: itchy, cracking, raw, broken skin, all for no apparent reason. Such a condition, of course, is not helped by what Lori Stotko—San Francisco area certified hand therapist (CHT) and a musician for 38 years—calls “persistently irritating activity such as scratching or pressing strings.”
With such a condition, there is usually an element of nerve damage, hence the neuro prefix, and there is always a heightened possibility of developing a skin fungus. According to Stotko, the skin becomes abraded by the strings, and then a fungus sets in. While most strings players form calluses, others just don’t. The fingertips become dried and cracked, but never heal.
It is believed that warm soapy water can exacerbate the problem—good excuse to have someone else do the dishes!—and in many cases, the condition grows worse in midwinter, most likely in response to drier weather. Some musicians use a humidifier in the house and drink an extra glass or two of water each day during the dry-weather season.
Many dermatologists recommend that players with this condition use “finger cots” or “finger cones” while playing—these are the thin latex fingertip gloves commonly used to keep moisture or dirt out of cuts and abrasions and fresh stitches—and to treat the fingertips with a cortisone ointment or triple-antibiotic cream. Usually, neurodermatitis responds slowly to cortisone cream, while your basic dry fingers respond better to petroleum jelly and triple-antibiotic cream. Fungus, of course, can be eliminated only with the use of an antifungal cream.
To determine which course of treatment you use, always see a dermatologist first. As in many other finger-related injuries, seek treatment as early as possible to counter the risk of further skin damage.
By David Templeton
Seventhson
My fingers were like that then they got hard and it does not happen any more.
MikeM
I suffer more from joint pain in both hands.. Worry about it sometimes. ☹
Ray
In winter my skin gets very dry and develop cracks in like the little groove parts of the prints and on the knuckles. But I use a soap that contains a moisturizer and that helps. Also plenty of the hand and nail cream in winter. I imagine that it must be qauite awkward playing guitar with the cap jobbees though.
BMU
If you're in Gauteng and prone to dry skin - problems. I used to get crocodile skin in winter, moisturizer only helping for a short time. Since moving to the coast I haven't had that.
Somewhat related story just for interest, from a book called The 100 Greatest Metal Guitarists by Joel McIver: Bjorn Gelotte from In Flames is apparently allergic to nickel. Of course guitar strings contain nickel, so when he plays the skin cracks and starts to bleed.
Obviously it hurts like hell but he says this isn't the problem 'cos playing live, adrenaline kills the pain. The problem is the drying blood gets sticky and makes it difficult to play as the gig goes on. Now that's hardcore. Imagine keeping on playing while your fingers bleed, every night. His solution was to glue contact lenses to his fingertips with superglue, this works but it takes months to come off. I think he said he eventually found strings that don't contain nickel.
evolucian
MikeM wrote:
I suffer more from joint pain in both hands.. Worry about it sometimes. ☹
That sucks dude... is it brought on by heat or cold? Mine is brought on by the great summers we have. The other thing is is that the heat makes my veins pop out (not out the skin, for some readers with vivid imaginations) and then I can't really clench a fist or play cos of the pain. Bummer
Bob-Dubery
If you can't close a fist then consider carpal tunnel syndrome as a possible cause. Inability to close a fist is a classic symptom of CTS.
evolucian
But its only in extreme heat/humidity.
Bob-Dubery
evolucian wrote:
But its only in extreme heat/humidity.
ok... I'm not a surgeon. I know that I had CTS, that I was having trouble making a fist - especially early in the morning - and the quack told me that it was a typical symptom.
evolucian
Bummer dude... that must suck a nasty one. The problem is is that it started even before I started playing guitar. At 15 you don't wanna admit that you old... but you old enough to have a drink... (meanwhile a glass of champagne makes u fall on your face but its best to tell the friends.. "nah, I polished off a bottle of stroh rum.. made me tipsy")
Thanks dude. I'll check it up with the doctor at some point.
Byron
Ive always wondered. When your finger tips harden does it make that sound of sliding your fingers across the strings worse ( not actually sliding but when you move across the frets without lifting fingers away form the strings) ?
MikeM
No real mobility problem, but every now and again it'll lose mobility and hurt real bad, particularly my middle finger.. Disappears once it's clicked.. Contrast quenching helps me, but usually it's not too bad.
