Hand X-ray
A hand x-ray looks at the small bones of the palm and fingers — most often after a punch, a crush, or a jammed finger. Because a hand fracture that heals even slightly rotated leaves a finger that no longer closes straight, these films get repeated during healing.
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What it is
There are nineteen bones in the palm and fingers, and they are small, overlapping, and unforgiving of being put back slightly wrong. A hand x-ray reads the position of each one. The commonest finding is a break in a metacarpal — one of the long bones in the palm — with the break at the base of the little finger, from striking something with a closed fist, common enough to have its own nickname. What the film is being read for is not just the presence of a crack but its angle and rotation, because a finger bone that unites at a twist will cross over its neighbour when the hand makes a fist. Views are taken from the front, the side, and an angle so the bones are not stacked on top of each other.
Why it is done
- To find a break in a palm or finger bone after a punch, a fall, a crush, or a jammed fingertip
- To measure how far a broken bone has angled or rotated, which decides whether it can be splinted or needs fixing
- To check that a fracture is still in position a week or two into treatment
- To locate a foreign body such as a shard of glass or metal embedded in the hand
- To assess the pattern of joint damage in arthritis, where which joints are affected helps identify the type
What to expect
The hand is laid flat on the plate, palm down, then turned on its side and angled for the remaining views; a positioning sponge is often used to hold a sore finger steady. Each exposure is momentary and the visit takes only a few minutes. Nothing needs to be done beforehand and there is no after-effect. With a confirmed fracture, a repeat film about one to two weeks later is usual to confirm nothing has shifted. A radiologist provides the formal reading.
Questions worth asking
- How many x-rays across the whole course of treatment, and is each visit billed as a new study?
- If the hand and the wrist are both filmed, are those two separate codes on the bill?
- At urgent care, is the x-ray bundled into the visit charge or added as a separate line, and is the reading included?
- If a single finger is the problem, is a finger x-ray a cheaper code than a whole hand, and which was ordered?
- Will a hand surgeon's office re-take films at the first appointment rather than use the ones already taken, and can the images be sent over instead?
What Hand X-ray costs by state
- Hand X-ray cost in Texas — 109 hospitals, median $404.40
- Hand X-ray cost in Florida — 82 hospitals, median $751.00
- Hand X-ray cost in Ohio — 67 hospitals, median $395.20
- Hand X-ray cost in California — 66 hospitals, median $421.20
- Hand X-ray cost in Illinois — 51 hospitals, median $430.56
- Hand X-ray cost in Virginia — 43 hospitals, median $281.50
- Hand X-ray cost in Tennessee — 38 hospitals, median $105.84
- Hand X-ray cost in Pennsylvania — 33 hospitals, median $296.80
- Hand X-ray cost in Wisconsin — 33 hospitals, median $388.74
- Hand X-ray cost in Iowa — 31 hospitals, median $305.50
- Hand X-ray cost in Michigan — 27 hospitals, median $452.12
- Hand X-ray cost in Indiana — 26 hospitals, median $403.20
- Hand X-ray cost in Georgia — 25 hospitals, median $402.00
- Hand X-ray cost in Washington — 25 hospitals, median $310.44
- Hand X-ray cost in New Jersey — 23 hospitals, median $97.54
- Hand X-ray cost in New York — 23 hospitals, median $104.19
- Hand X-ray cost in Arizona — 22 hospitals, median $106.92
- Hand X-ray cost in Kentucky — 22 hospitals, median $585.00
- Hand X-ray cost in Missouri — 21 hospitals, median $247.50
- Hand X-ray cost in Minnesota — 19 hospitals, median $218.40
- Hand X-ray cost in Oklahoma — 18 hospitals, median $297.55
- Hand X-ray cost in Colorado — 17 hospitals, median $1,032.98
- Hand X-ray cost in West Virginia — 17 hospitals, median $368.00
- Hand X-ray cost in North Carolina — 15 hospitals, median $266.50
- Hand X-ray cost in Nebraska — 13 hospitals, median $249.00
- Hand X-ray cost in Oregon — 13 hospitals, median $252.75
- Hand X-ray cost in Kansas — 11 hospitals, median $386.10
- Hand X-ray cost in Mississippi — 11 hospitals, median $102.91
- Hand X-ray cost in South Carolina — 11 hospitals, median $288.00
- Hand X-ray cost in Arkansas — 10 hospitals, median $323.70
- Hand X-ray cost in Maine — 7 hospitals, median $384.60
- Hand X-ray cost in South Dakota — 7 hospitals, median $334.40
- Hand X-ray cost in Alaska — 5 hospitals, median $667.68
- Hand X-ray cost in Nevada — 4 hospitals, median $452.23
- Hand X-ray cost in North Dakota — 4 hospitals, median $216.80
- Hand X-ray cost in Wyoming — 4 hospitals, median $250.62
- Hand X-ray cost in Hawaii — 2 hospitals, median $195.84
- Hand X-ray cost in Maryland — 2 hospitals, median $106.80
- Hand X-ray cost in Montana — 2 hospitals, median $225.60
- Hand X-ray cost in New Mexico — 2 hospitals, median $293.58
- Hand X-ray cost in Louisiana — 1 hospitals, median $131.82
- Hand X-ray cost in New Hampshire — 1 hospitals, median $293.05
Hand X-ray prices at hospitals
- Hand X-ray at Banner North Colorado Medical Center - Loveland Campus, Loveland — $62.30
- Hand X-ray at Banner Goldfield Medical Center, Apache Junction — $68.40
- Hand X-ray at Mercy Health Love County Rural Health Clinic, MARIETTA — $69.00
- Hand X-ray at 64-0362400 Anderson Regional Main Campus, Meridian — $75.46
- Hand X-ray at 82-3844150 BMH Crittenden, West Memphis — $75.60
- Hand X-ray at 64-0682111 BMH DeSoto, Southaven — $77.20
- Hand X-ray at Banner Casa Grande Medical Center, Casa Grande — $77.40
- Hand X-ray at Dickenson Community Hospital, CLINTWOOD — $78.66
- Hand X-ray at Hancock County Hospital, SNEEDVILLE — $78.66
- Hand X-ray at Lee County Community Hospital, PENNINGTON GAP — $78.66
- Hand X-ray at Johnson County Community Hospital, MOUNTAIN CITY — $78.66
- Hand X-ray at Banner Wyoming Medical Center, Casper — $78.96
- Hand X-ray at Bristol Regional Medical Center, BRISTOL — $80.10
- Hand X-ray at Franklin Woods Community Hospital, JOHNSON CITY — $80.10
- Hand X-ray at Greeneville Community Hospital, GREENEVILLE — $80.10
- Hand X-ray at Hawkins County Memorial Hospital, ROGERSVILLE — $80.10
- Hand X-ray at Holston Valley Medical Center, KINGSPORT — $80.10
- Hand X-ray at Indian Path Community Hospital, KINGSPORT — $80.10
- Hand X-ray at Johnson City Medical Center, JOHNSON CITY — $80.10
- Hand X-ray at Johnston Memorial Hospital, ABINGDON — $80.10
See every published price for Hand X-ray: the full national range, the state and hospital breakdowns, and which hospitals charge the least.
Hand X-ray cost — see all prices →Sources
- OrthoInfo (AAOS): Hand Fractures (opens in a new tab, leaves healthcosts.net)
- MedlinePlus: X-ray (opens in a new tab, leaves healthcosts.net)
- Wikipedia (opens in a new tab, leaves healthcosts.net)