Finger tip injuries.
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Developments of the past decade, primarily in biomechanics, are characterized through personal recollections. Topics covered include pressure treatment of hypertrophic scars, laser eradication of tattoos, amputation stump and artificial limb interactions, elbow arthoplasty, disability rehabilitation and training for sports performance, functional electrical stimulation and joint goniometry. The review is prefaced by comments on the present day context and resource environment of bioengineering research and ends by discussing the anticipated advent of health maintenance oriented community care as the activity of first priority for the future.
In twenty-four patients with intolerance to cold after partial or complete finger amputations, lower skin temperature together with cold and vibration allodynia (allodynia = pain due to a non-noxious stimulus to neural skin) were found in the cold intolerant area compared with the corresponding area in the uninjured hand. When treated with regional intravenous guanethidine block nine patients became free from symptoms for up to twelve weeks, which is longer than would be expected from the duration of the known pharmacological effects of guanethidine. The patients had several features in common with reflex sympathetic dystrophies, and we suggest that neurogenic rather than vascular disturbances are mainly involved in the post-traumatic cold intolerance syndrome.
A method of closed irrigation has been devised to treat infections in the hand. After adequate débridement, two tubes are placed in the infected area, an inlet tube and an outlet tube. For a small infection, one tube serves both purposes. The wound is closed completely. Irrigation with saline and antibiotic solution is continued for 1 week, extended up to 3 weeks in cases of severe infection. This method has been applied in 31 cases including pyogenic tenosynovitis, tuberculous tenosynovitis, pyogenic arthritis, osteomyelitis, bite injury, crush injury and amputation stump infection. Infection healed primarily in 29 cases. Further surgery was needed in two cases which healed finally.
The rolling belts on agricultural machinery attract children who unconsciously grab them. The injuries produced include friction burns, injuries to flexor tendons, digital nerves and arteries, skin in zone 2 and fractures. Subtotal or total amputation may occur. We present the results of such injuries to 44 fingers in 16 children aged 1 to 9. The functional results are not satisfactory. In order to grade the results we have devised a classification to this injury. The survival rate for all fingers was 71%, but in the fingers with circulatory problems the survival rate was 50%. On functional assessment seven patients had a good result, seven moderate, and two fair.
This study aimed to identify areas of disagreement in the management of neurogenic pain. A short questionnaire was mailed to 179 consultants with an interest in chronic pain (response rate 89%). The questionnaire listed 11 specific conditions involving nerve pain (e.g., post-herpetic neuralgia, causalgia) together with 11 treatments (e.g., antidepressants, neurectomy). Consultants were asked to rate the use of each treatment for each condition as 'appropriate', 'no value or positively harmful' or 'no opinion'. Much disagreement emerged about the value of each therapy for each condition: in almost every instance at least some consultants disagreed with the majority view. The dissenting minority was greater than 20% of those who gave an opinion for 48 of the 121 applications of therapy asked about. The appropriateness of treatments for trigeminal neuralgia, amputation stump pain and phantom pain was most often in dispute and there was little consensus on the value of nerve blocks. There were a few areas of near agreement. Antidepressants and anticonvulsants were mostly identified as appropriate for all the conditions listed and there was some agreement that strong opioids and the neuroablative techniques were appropriate for cancer pressure or infiltration of nerves but, with a few exceptions, of no value for all other neurogenic pain conditions. Divergence of views about treatments may indicate a lack of credible evidence on the value of therapies or a lack of professional knowledge. Where published evidence is clear, the consequences for patients may be under-use of useful therapies or potential iatrogenic harm.
Reconstructive options for early microsurgical tissue and island flap transfer are discussed in 23 patients with extensive avulsion and degloving injuries of the hands and fingers. The patients were divided into three groups (1) degloving thumb injuries; (2) crush avulsions with or without degloving of the palm and fingers; (3) complete degloving injuries of the hand and distal forearm. There were 11 free and 12 island flap transfers. There was partial loss in two flaps with satisfactory esthetic and functional results in these patients. The advantages and indications for the use of distally based radial forearm flap for degloving thumb injuries and pedicled ulnar forearm flap for avulsion of the distal part of the hand are discussed. The use of free transfer of greater omentum in the cases of extensive degloving of the hand is shown.
OBJECTIVE: The objective of our study is to evaluate the functional and professional becoming of lower limb amputated population with prosthesis. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Our study is retro-prospective. It interested lower limbs amputated patients who have beneficed during the period between 1982-1998 with prosthesis and have consulted in 1999. Data of our study were gathered by an hetero questionnaire. In order to evaluate the functional results of our patients, we have adopted the score established by the National association of doctors specialized in apparatus in France (ANMA). However, this score was little modified (in fact, we have eliminated the item "use of personalized vehicle for handicapped [VHP]", because no one of our patients possess it). The results were judged favourable: score 6-7; unfavourable: mean score between 3-5 and bad between 0-2. RESULTS: During the year of our survey, we have questioned 85 lower limb amputated patients with prosthesis: 67 were male and 18 were female. The mean age of our patients is 48 years (6 to 86 years). Our population was divided into: 31 traumatic amputated, 28 arteritics and 26 amputated of other etiologies (tumoral, infectious, congenital...). In 76 cases, the amputation is unilateral. It's located upper the knee in 51 cases. The evaluation of functional autonomy of our patients according to score adopted showed those results: 54.11% were favourable and 45.88% were unfavourable. In professional side, only 35 among our 60 active patients before amputation, have been able to resume, 12 have needed a professional rehabilitation. Among the 25 who hadn't taken up again their work, 15 have early retirement and ten are in unemployment. CONCLUSION: The amputation of lower limb constitute a major handicap which involves a functional and professional incapacity. We can reduce the risk of this incapacity by a good and appropriate rehabilitation.
PURPOSE: To demonstrate experimentally, with the use of pig knee joints, that the posterior meniscofemoral ligament (PML) stabilizes the lateral meniscus (LM). METHODS: Amputated stumps of the knee joints of Yorkshire pigs, which are anatomically similar to human knee joints, were used. The PML was intact or was cut according to 1 of 6 different conditions: (1) intact PML with intact LM, (2) intact PML with a radial tear of the posterior horn of the LM, (3) intact PML with total lateral meniscectomy, (4) cut PML with intact LM, (5) cut PML with a radial tear of the posterior horn of the LM, and (6) cut PML with total lateral meniscectomy. Pressure-sensitive film was inserted beneath the lateral femoral condyle, an axial load of 150 kg was placed on the knee joint with a universal testing machine, and the pressed area and maximum and average pressures were measured with the Prescale Imaging Analysis System (Fujifilm Medical Systems, Stamford, CT). RESULTS: With an intact PML, no difference was seen between the intact meniscus and the radial tear of the posterior horn of the LM in pressed area and maximum and average pressures. With a cut PML, pressure concentration, detected as significantly reduced pressed area and increased maximum and average pressures, was observed, regardless of the condition of the LM. CONCLUSIONS: PML of the pig stabilized the LM under an axial load, and an intact PML yielded results similar to those observed in total lateral meniscectomy. Our findings suggest that posterior horn tears of the LM, which are rarely symptomatic, may be caused by stabilizing of the lateral meniscus by the PML against the load placed on the knee joint. CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Findings suggest that the PML, lateral side, stabilizes the LM when the ligament is intact. Even when a tear of the meniscus occurs, no increased localized pressure areas appear on the meniscus; this may explain why these tears are rarely symptomatic.
BACKGROUND: Reconstruction of soft tissue defects of the lower third of the leg, the heel and the hind foot remains a challenge. The distally based sural artery fasciocutaneous flap has been used effectively to resurface these defects. In many instances, it has obviated the need for free tissue transfer. OBJECTIVE: The objective of the study is to evaluate the efficacy of reverse sural artery fasciocutaneous flap for coverage of lower third leg, posterior heel, malleoli and hind foot. STUDY DESIGN: This is a descriptive study, which was conducted on 84 patients who presented with soft tissue defects in the area of lower third leg, heel, malleoli and hind foot. PLACE AND DURATION OF STUDY: The study was conducted at department of plastic and reconstructive surgery, Federal Postgraduate Medical Institute Shaikh Zayed Hospital Lahore, over a period of 7 years from February 1997 to February 2005. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Over a period of 7 years, a total of 84 patients with Soft tissue defect of lower third leg, heel, malleoli and hind foot were included. Preoperative data, the age and sex of each patient, cause and site of defect, dimension of flap, transposition of pedicle (through a tunnel or laid open and covered with a skin graft), postoperative results and complications were recorded. All patients were followed up in out patients department for 6 months. RESULTS: Out of 84 patients, 54 were males and 30 females. Their ages ranged from 8 to 55 years with a mean of 31 years. Road traffic accidents was the cause of the defects in 53 patients, wheel spoke injury in 12 patients, trophic ulcer in five patients, osteomyelitis in five patients, marjolin ulcer in seven patients and diabetic ulcer in two patients. The site of 84 defects comprised 52 distal tibia; 20 tendo-Achillis and posterior heel defects; seven-malleolar region; three-anterior ankle and two-foot amputation stumps. The dimension of flap ranged from 5 to 15 cm in length and 4 to 12 cm in width. Postoperatively 66 flaps survived completely while marginal necrosis was seen in six patients and infection in four patients. The complete flap necrosis occurred in eight patients. There was no considerable morbidity at donor site and all patients had satisfactory functional outcome. CONCLUSIONS: The distally based superficial sural artery flap is a versatile, reliable procedure, useful in reconstruction of lower third leg, heel, malleoli and hind foot defects. The surgical technique is safe, of short duration and provides alternative to microsurgical reconstruction.
PURPOSE: To develop a system for refined motor control of artificial hands based on multiple electromyographic (EMG) recordings, allowing multiple patterns of hand movements. METHODS: Five subjects with traumatic below-elbow amputations and 1 subject with a congenital below- elbow failure of formation performed 10 imaginary movements with their phantom hand while surface electrodes recorded the EMG data. In a training phase a data glove with 18 degrees of freedom was used for positional recording of movements in the contralateral healthy hand. These movements were performed at the same time as the imaginary movements in the phantom hand. An artificial neural network (ANN) then could be trained to associate the specific EMG patterns recorded from the amputation stump with the analogous specific hand movements synchronously performed in the healthy hand. The ability of the ANN to predict the 10 imaginary movements offline, when they were reflected in a virtual computer hand, was assessed and calculated. RESULTS: After the ANN was trained the subjects were able to perform and control 10 hand movements in the virtual computer hand. The subjects showed a median performance of 5 types of movement with a high correlation with the movement pattern of the data glove. The subjects seemed to relearn to execute motor commands rapidly that had been learned before the accident, independent of how old the injury was. The subject with congenital below-elbow failure of formation was able to perform and control several hand movements in the computer hand that cannot be performed in a myoelectric prosthesis (eg, opposition of the thumb). CONCLUSIONS: With the combined use of an ANN and a data glove, acting in concert in a training phase, amputees rapidly can learn to execute several imaginary movements in a virtual computerized hand, this opens promising possibilities for motor control of future hand prostheses.
A case report is presented of self-amputation of a healthy hand. We have reviewed the literature and seek to broaden the scope of understanding of Body Integrity Identity Disorder. This rare condition can constitute a pitfall for the unsuspecting hand surgeon.
Recently, much attention has been focused on the role of adjuvant chemotherapy in the treatment of osteosarcoma. Surgery, however, remains the primary modality for the ablation of this disease. In this report, we examine the relationship of various aspects of surgical management of osteosarcoma to prognosis for disease-free survival (DFS) in a randomized study of 234 pediatric patients. Attention is restricted to 166 patients with nonmetastatic disease confined to an extremity and who were randomized to receive one of two chemotherapeutic regimens. No advantage with respect to DFS was attributable to the various aspects of surgical management considered: interval from first symptoms to definitive surgery, surgical sequence, and type of surgery. Only two local recurrences were seen. One occurred in an above knee amputation stump and the other occurred in a patient receiving a tibial allograft. One of these patients died of pulmonary metastases within 6 months of recurrence; the other patient is alive without evidence of disease at last contact after resection of the recurrence followed by chemotherapy.
The effects of age on the dendritic tree of reduced nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate-diaphorase (NADPH-d)-positive neurons in the dorsolateral neuronal column of the periaqueductal gray (DLPAG) in the rat were examined, using NADPH-d histochemistry and computer-assisted analysis. In 26-month-old rats some of the neurons exhibited considerably branched dendrites, while others show amputation stumps, or local swellings in the initial dendritic portion. Quantitative analysis demonstrated that the number of dendritic segments in DLPAG increased with advancing age. The mean segment length and the mean length of the terminal segment significantly increased in 12-month-old rats compared to 3-month-old rats and decreased in 26-month-old rats in comparison to 12-month-old, as the reduction was significant for the terminal segments only. The total dendritic length of NADPH-d-stained neurons increased with aging. The increase was more pronounced in 12-month-old rats compared to 3-month-old rats and the difference was significant in 26-month-old rats. The number of the nodal vertices, Va and Vb, significantly increased between 12- and 26-month of age. The dendritic reorganization was considered a sign of compensatory mechanism counteracting the degenerative changes.
Neurotrophic factors may play key roles in pathophysiological mechanisms of human neuropathies. Nerve growth factor (NGF) is trophic to small-diameter sensory fibers and regulates nociception. This review focuses on sensory dysfunction and the potential of neurotrophic treatments. Genetic neuropathy. Mutations of the NGF high-affinity receptor tyrosine kinase A (Trk A) have been found in congenital insensitivity to pain and anhidrosis; these are likely to be partial loss-of-function mutations, as axon-reflex vasodilatation and sweating can be elicited albeit reduced, suggesting rhNGF could restore nociception in some patients. Leprous neuropathy. Decreased NGF in leprosy skin may explain cutaneous hypoalgesia even with inflammation and rhNGF may restore sensation, as spared nerve fibers show Trk A-staining. Diabetic neuropathy. NGF is depleted in early human diabetic neuropathy skin, in correlation with dysfunction of nociceptor fibers. We proposed rhNGF prophylaxis may prevent diabetic foot ulceration. Clinical trials have been disappointed, probably related to difficulty delivering adequate doses and need for multiple trophic factors. NGF and glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor (GDNF) are both produced by basal keratinocytes and neurotrophin (NT-3) by suprabasal keratinocytes: relative mRNA expression was significantly lower in early diabetic neuropathy skin compared to controls, for NGF (P < 0.02), BDNF (P < 0.05), NT-3 (P < 0.05), GDNF (< 0.02), but not NT4/5, Trk A or p75 neurotrophin receptor (all P > 0.05). Posttranslational modifications of mature and pro-NGF may also affect bioactivity and immunoreactivity. A 53 kD band that could correspond to a prepro-NGF-like molecule was reduced in diabetic skin. Traumatic neuropathy and pain. While NGF levels are acutely reduced in injured nerve trunks, neuropathic patients with chronic skin hyperalgesia and allodynia show marked local increases of NGF levels; here anti-NGF agents may provide analgesia. Physiological combinations of NGF, NT-3 and GDNF, to mimic a 'surrogate target organ', may provide a novel 'homeostatic' approach to prevent the development and ameliorate intractable neuropathic pain (e.g., at painful amputation stumps).
The experience with thumb reconstruction through metacarpal bone lengthening in 35 patients treated over a period of 12 years is presented. In 25 cases a spontaneous consolidation of the gap between the distracted fragments occurred, whereas in the remaining 10 the gap was bridged by a bone graft. The elongation of the metacarpal achieved varied from 2 to 4 cm. Examination of patients followed from 4 to 8 years after the treatment shows a good appearance of the reconstructed thumb without osteolysis or other trophic changes in the distal end. The quality of the skin sensibility in the amputation stump is preserved after the lengthening.
Rudimentary polydactyly was found in five patients. Surgical exploration of the papules revealed findings that have not been previously published. A cord-like structure arises from the bottom of the papule, with its proximal portion joining the neurovascular bundle of the digit. Histologic examination of the cord showed strong similarity to the neurovascular bundle of a finger. From these findings, we assume that rudimentary polydactyly may represent the amputation stump of pedunculated fingers.