title: Bowstring injury of the flexor tendon pulley system: MR imaging.
abstract: OBJECTIVE. The flexor tendon pulley system is often ruptured when a flexed finger is forcibly extended. In the acute phase, soft-tissue swelling and pain often make clinical evaluation difficult. These pulleys are not constantly visualized on MR imaging. Rupture of the pulley system can be inferred by observing bow stringing of the underlying flexor tendons when MR imaging is obtained with the finger in flexion. Our objective is to describe the flexor tendon pulley system and present our MR technique.
authors.affiliation: Department of Radiology, Medical College of Virginia, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond 23298, USA.
authors.forename: J A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Parellada
authors.forename: A R
authors.initials: AR
authors.lastname: Balkissoon
authors.forename: C W
authors.initials: CW
authors.lastname: Hayes
authors.forename: W F
authors.initials: WF
authors.lastname: Conway
mesh_terms: D005383:Finger Injuries / Q000175:diagnosis*; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D012421:Rupture; D013708:Tendon Injuries / Q000175:diagnosis*