title: Avulsion of the flexor digitorum profundus: anatomic and biomechanical considerations.
abstract: Avulsion of the profundus insertion occurs most commonly in the ring finger. The exact reason for this predilection is unknown. Clinical observation of patients with this injury reveals that a common finding is that the ring fingertip is usually more prominent or "longer" than any other fingertip during grip. A laboratory investigation shows that during grip the ring fingertip becomes 5 mm more prominent than any other digit in 90% of subjects and that it absorbs more force than any other finger during pull-away testing. These factors contribute to the susceptibility of the ring finger to the profundus avulsion injury.
authors.affiliation: Division of Orthopaedic Surgery, University of North Carolina School of Medicine, Chapel Hill 27514.
authors.forename: D K
authors.initials: DK
authors.lastname: Bynum
authors.forename: J A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Gilbert
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001696:Biomechanical Phenomena; D005383:Finger Injuries / Q000503:physiopathology*; D005385:Fingers / Q000033:anatomy & histology / Q000503:physiopathology*; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D009132:Muscles / Q000033:anatomy & histology / Q000293:injuries* / Q000503:physiopathology; D012016:Reference Values