Clicking fingers in children

When children have problems with flexing and extending their fingers, they may be due to nodular thickening of flexor tendons, restricting the sliding movement. The causes behind this disorder are still not fully understood; the defect may be a congenital one. The problem pertains mostly to the thumb and, less commonly, to the ring and little fingers in children. The thickening may be painful. Treatment includes physical therapy and, if necessary (and as often indicated in children), a surgical procedure, consisting in transecting or removing the fibrous capsule to facilitate the sliding movement of the thickened tendon.