Nailbed repair and patient satisfaction in children.
BACKGROUND
We performed an audit to assess frequency of injury to the nail bed and outcomes after repair in a busy paediatric hand trauma clinic.


METHODS
This retrospective study examines 46 consecutive nail bed repairs over a 6-month period. All notes were reviewed for patient demographics, details of the injury including the operation and aftercare. Telephone interviews were used to assess patient/parent satisfaction and complications.


RESULTS
The commonest mechanism of injury was trapping a finger in a door. The accident usually occurred indoors and most frequently affected the middle finger. The majority of repairs were carried out under general anaesthetic, by registrars, using absorbable synthetic sutures, within 24 h of the injury as a day-case. Outcome data with a minimum of 15 months follow-up, showed a high satisfaction rate (8.9/10) and low complication rate (7%), none of which required further surgery. There was a high failure rate of attendance in the follow-up clinic whilst the outcomes of those attending were good.


CONCLUSIONS
Outcomes and patient satisfaction were good with a low complication rate resulting in a change of practice in our unit to an 'opt-in' system for follow-up.
Department of Plastic & Reconstructive Surgery, St George's Hospital, London, UK. sipearce707@hotmail.com
S
S
Pearce
R J I
RJ
Colville
D000293:Adolescent; D017677:Age Distribution; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D005383:Finger Injuries / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery*; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D009262:Nails / Q000293:injuries*; D017060:Patient Satisfaction; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D016896:Treatment Outcome