Any products to prevent thumb injury on blocker hand?

[WillyGrips13]

I jammed my thumb on my blocker hand hard into the ice when making a sudden and rapid movement to make a save. This was in October. My thumb swelled up and was in pain. I iced it and massaged it. The swelling went down and the pain lessened. However, I still can’t bend it and there’s a dull pain when doing anything with it. I have managed to continue playing throughout.

I finally decided to get it checked out. Turns out I broke my thumb. I have a consultation with a surgeon on the 15th. The larger bone in the thumb has a piece at the top of the bone that’s separated, not allowing bending. Surgery is likely. We’ll see what he says.

I would prefer to delay the surgery until after the season, I play on five different teams. Unless the recovery time is quick and I can start playing soon after surgery. 

Anyway, all this to say, is there a product that I can wear on my blocker hand or thumb that would prevent me from jamming my thumb again? I seem to have a bad habit of my fingers getting in the way of everything, not just in hockey but in life. I probably unconsciously extended my thumb because I was extending my hand on the other arm. 
 

I can post the X-ray if you want to satisfy your morbid curiosity.

[chile57]

Bummer @WillyGrips13. To answer your question - I'd probably look for something similar to below (and what will likely govern is what you can fit in your mitt)...

Some of them should have like a hard piece option that might help against jamming (that Push Sports one looks pretty legit but bulky). I'm no doctor and not hip to the nature/fix for your break but I can tell you that I had to have a pin inserted into my index finger for a hockey break. Thing was both internal and external (as it there was a giant plastic ball poking out that they used to yank it out once it was healed). It was not a quick fix - weeks with the pin and then months (?) thereafter of three days a week therapy (you'd be surprised how stiff and unusable your digit becomes while its on the shelf). I would think your thumb would be the trickiest of all digits but that's just an educated guess. I used a variation of the Palmguard gloves inside my mitt after my break (take a look on the Google - they are mostly for baseball mitts) to protect my finger after I was given the greenlight to play because it was still pretty sore. Thing made closing my glove super cumbersome (and barely fit in the finger stall when it was all said and done). Would think that it being on your blocker hand would make it a little easier to accommodate.

Good luck with everything - let us know how it turns out for you.

Edited January 2 by chile57

[Fullright]

Futuro Deluxe Thumb Stabilizer, S/M, PK12 45843ENR | Zoro which seems very pricey but this might be useful too:  Buy Push Sports Thumb Brace [Latex-Free] | Push Thumb Brace

Jeez  @WillyGrips13, see above. Not sure how this would work with your blocker on but might lead you to something helpful. Not surprised you are playing through it.

Yes, I would like to see the torture porn xray. I shared my leg so show me the thumb.

Get better. 

Edited January 2 by Fullright

[johncho]

20 minutes ago, Fullright said:

Futuro Deluxe Thumb Stabilizer, S/M, PK12 45843ENR | Zoro which seems very pricey but this might be useful too:  Buy Push Sports Thumb Brace [Latex-Free] | Push Thumb Brace

I would definitely wear something like the first link with a hard brace/splint if I was coming off an injury like a break.

[seagoal]

Those thumb braces with a hard piece to prevent bending work really well with a blocker.  It's surprising how little it affected dexterity when I wore one.  

Also, as an added bonus, those thumb braces are a really nice life hack for correcting floppy blockers.  You know how blockers eventually loosen and get floppy? A fix is to make your hand bigger and these braces, or any tipless gloves really, do that well.  

I kept wearing mine long after my thumb injury for the life of that blocker years ago .

 

[WillyGrips13]

12 hours ago, Fullright said:

Yes, I would like to see the torture porn xray. I shared my leg so show me the thumb.

 

[Fullright]

Nice!!  Looks like it hurts when you use it. 

You might need a screw or pin to reduce the fracture, sorry say; I hope my guess is wrong. Do you write with that hand? 

All fun aside, hope you get a full recovery. Never been a question about your guts but dont let it get worse.

[JediGoalie30]

Guardiangear.org

I don’t have any personal experience with this, but I coach the goalies on my daughters’ youth lacrosse team and thumb injuries are a very common occupational hazard for lacrosse goalies. I have heard from many who have augmented their thumb protection with these and he is very highly regarded in the lax goalie community. Might be worth looking into. 
 

Get well soon!!!