During this holiday season, Kleinert Kutz Hand Specialists urges safety while preparing for your Thanksgiving feast.  Every year during Thanksgiving, and throughout the holiday season people sustain hand injuries while preparing their holiday feast.  From cutting open pumpkins to carving turkeys, hand injuries are all too common.  Many hand injuries also occur during post-meal clean-up.  Take extra caution when washing dishes especially soap covered glasses which can be extremely slippery.  Each year we treat several tendon and nerve injuries that were caused by crystal breaking while washing glasses by hand. 

Tips for a Safe Carving Season:

• Never cut towards yourself.
• Keep your cutting area well-lit and dry.
• Keep your knife handles dry. 
• Keep all cutting utensils sharp.  A knife too dull will cause you to use unnecessary force which can lead to an injury.
• Leave the meat and pumpkin carving to the adults.

If an injury does occur, Dr. Tuna Ozyurekoglu recommends the following steps be taken:

• Elevate the hand above the heart and apply pressure to the wound with a clean cloth.
• If after applying continuous pressure for 15 minutes does not stop the bleeding, seek emergency care.
• If any numbness or inability to move the fingers occurs, seek emergency care.

“Immediate medical attention is important,” said Dr. Ozyurekoglu.  “The longer a patient waits to seek medical attention, the more difficult the repair will be.”

Kleinert Kutz hand specialists are available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.  Call (502) 561-4263 for hand emergencies and to schedule an appointment.