Memorial Hermann-Texas Medical Center

Memorial Hermann Orthopedic Center

Comprehensive Hand Center

Our Comprehensive Hand Center is equipped to handle the most difficult and delicate cases, injuries such as fractures, dislocations, wounds and lacerations. In addition, medical staff physicians are skilled at the reattachment of severed limbs, working to restore function to allow patients to live full, active lives.

From the faculty of The University of Texas Medical School at Houston, the surgeons rank with the most skilled in the nation and offer such advanced options as microsurgery and arthroscopic hand and wrist surgery. In addition to trauma, they offer a full range of adult and pediatric elective procedures and surgeries to treat:

• Nerve disorders (carpal tunnel, ulnar nerve, brachial plexus)
• Osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis
• Wrist and elbow stiffness and instability
• Nonunion or malunion
• Dupuytren’s contracture
• Bone and soft-tissue tumors
• Vascular disorders
• Tendon injuries and tendonitis (tennis elbow, golfer’s elbow)
• Ligament injuries
• Building hands for those born without them from harvested tissue and bone

Hand specialists at the Center participate in ongoing research, giving patients early access to the newest treatments and techniques. Idris Gharbaoui, M.D., medical director of the Memorial Hermann Comprehensive Hand Center, is currently conducting grant research on bone fixation systems and tendon and nerve repair, while Gloria Gogola, M.D., is researching the treatment of brachial plexus injuries in children.

In addition to our exceptional staff, Memorial Hermann-Texas Medical Center offers the latest high-tech tools, including the newest microsurgical scopes and apparatus. For diagnosis, our surgeons and physicians have at their disposal high speed CT scanning, ultrasound, angiogram and a remarkable three-Tesla MRI.

Among the most experienced in their field, Memorial Hermann hand specialists perform surgeries that include:

• Bone, ligament and tendon repair and reconstruction
• Joint replacement (fingers, thumb, wrist and elbow)
• Nerve release, repair, neurotization, brachial plexus repair
• Tendon transfers, repair, reconstruction
• Vascular repair, sympathectomy

In many cases, procedures are done using minimally invasive techniques, such as endoscopic carpal tunnel release. Benefits for patients include:

• Smaller incisions
• Less trauma
• Less blood loss
• Fewer complications
• Faster recoveries – days instead of weeks
• Less need for post-op casting or splinting

To ensure your patients receive state-of-the-art care for their hand and wrist maladies, contact a Memorial Hermann Hand Center physician.