Dr. Mark Cohen Comments on the Quarterback's Thumb Injury

Shortly after an exciting win against the San Diego Chargers, Bears fans were stunned to find that Chicago's beloved quarterback, Jay Cutler suffered what may have been a season ending thumb injury.

Dr. Mark Cohen, Hand, Wrist & Elbow specialist at Midwest Orthopaedics at Rush and Director, Section of Hand and Elbow Surgery at Rush University Medical Center was featured on several Chicago area news outlets describing the most common treatment methods for an injury such as the one Cutler endured during Sunday's game. Having treated several players from both the Chicago Bulls and White Sox organization, Dr. Cohen is familiar with treating hand injuries in high performance athletes.

Dr. Cohen explained that the need for surgery is likely to place pins into bones that have been displaced or separated. The pins work to realign bones in the thumb in order for them to properly heal. The injury typically requiresd 4-6 weeks for the bone to fully heal, followed by 1-2 weeks of rehabilitation in order to gain full range of motion and ultimately return to sport. Dr. Cohen explained that full function and mobility of the throwing hand is essential in getting Cutler back to the playing field by saying, "This thumb is so important to him throwing a football for the rest of his career, getting him back in the game early isn't worth the potential risk of a re-injury. He will have to heal his bone and have time to recover movement and strength before returning to play safely and effectively".

Chicago Tribune: Surgeons: 'unstable fracture'

NFL News: Hand surgeon: Bears QB Cutler could miss up to eight weeks

The Seattle Times: Broken thumb could sideline Chicago's Jay Cutler rest of season

Yahoo! Sports: Bears QB Cutler needs eight weeks?