Dupuytren’s disease

Dupuytren’s infiltrating treatment based on collagenase: effective, quick and lasting results with less risk and discomfort than traditional surgery.

Dupuytren’s disease is a hand pathology that causes the appearance of hard cords and palpable fibrosis under the skin. In fact, the band is a relatively superficial tissue that divides the skin from the underlying organs and tissues, such as bones, muscles, vessels and nerves. These cords are made up of an altered form of the collagen, the human protein with the function of supporting structures. These pathological cords can cause deformity to the fingers, which bend and remain in a flexed position, with no possibility to extend (open). Dupuytren’s disease tends to progressively worsen the degree of flexion over time, at variable and unpredictable speeds. The patient will experience discomfort in interpersonal relationships as he cannot properly shake his hand, he will have trouble putting his hands in his pocket, riding a bicycle, driving and doing many of the thousands of activities we do each day with our hands. Previously, these deformities were treated only surgically, with many hours in the operation theater, long and exhausting hospitalizations, intense rehabilitation in the hospital and after discharge. Surgery was not without risks and discomforts. This is almost always avoided today thanks to the new therapy based on Collagenase of Clostridium Histolytycum Collagenase, an enzyme that selectively targets the pathological cords of Dupuytren’s disease, and allows to interrupt them through a simple injection in the doctor’s office. A delicate manipulation maneuver is then performed 24 hours later, again in a medical office. This drug has already been widely tested and is now an established treatment for the experts in Hand Surgery as a first choice method, thus relegating surgery to extremely limited cases.

This therapy is carried out by specialists in Hand Surgery who have followed a specific training, at authorized centers and under close monitoring of the Italian Medicines Agency (AIFA), as is the case for Dr Boriani who was the expert of collagenase for Dupuytren’s disease at he prestigious Rizzoli Institute.

It is highly unsuitable for Dupuytren’s patients to seek surgeons without a documented training or hand surgery experience as they may offer only surgical therapy which is discouraged and no longer offered as the first choice in treating this disease .