11/16/2018 FINGER INJURIES Dr. P.T.Kenny.

Introduction Injuries to fingers occur fairly often. Mostly at work or while gardening. The hands are usually dirty with soil or grease. It is difficult to clean or to examine the hand or finger properly due to pain. It is also awkward to drape for suturing or removal of a nail, etc.

Management of an injured finger. Select a sterile, rubber / latex, surgical glove, slightly smaller than would normally fit the patient’s hand. Cut off the tip of the glove finger that corresponds with the injured finger of the patient.

Finger tip cut off

Continued... Put the glove on the patient’s injured hand. The injured finger should protrude through the hole in the finger of the glove. Roll the rubber of this finger up as far as possible. This will function as a tourniquet. The dirty hand is now inside the glove and only the injured finger is exposed.

Result ……..

Continued... Now clean the injured finger. Do a ring block of the finger (see technique). Drape the hand. Suture the laceration or remove the nail, whatever is needed. Bandage the finger (not tightly!). Cut off/remove the glove. Let the patient clean his/her own hand at home!

Ring block

A 5-ml syringe with a 25-gauge needle, filled with 4ml of 1% Lignocaine at room temperature, is recommended for these procedures.

Reference.