title: Finger zone II flexor tendon repair in children (5-10 years of age) using three 'figure of eight' sutures followed by immediate active mobilization.
abstract: For children between 5-10 years of age with zone II flexor tendon lacerations, the literature recommends a modified early mobilization programme under the supervision of a hand therapist but the fingers are immobilized between physiotherapy sessions. We report on a series of children between 5-10 years of age with flexor tendon lacerations (n = 54 fingers) in zone II repaired with a six-strand core suture (three separate 'figure of eight' sutures) and actively mobilized immediately after surgery similar to adult rehabilitation programmes with no immobilization between the physiotherapy sessions. The average follow-up for the study group was 13 months (range 7-25 months). There were no ruptures. The final outcome was excellent in 46 fingers (85%) and good in the remaining eight fingers (15%) using the Strickland-Glogovac criteria.
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgery, King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. moqattan@hotmail.com
authors.forename: Mohammad M
authors.initials: MM
authors.lastname: Al-Qattan
mesh_terms: D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D005383:Finger Injuries / Q000534:rehabilitation* / Q000601:surgery*; D006801:Humans; D022125:Lacerations / Q000534:rehabilitation* / Q000601:surgery*; D008297:Male; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012421:Rupture; D013165:Splints; D013536:Suture Techniques; D013537:Sutures; D013708:Tendon Injuries / Q000534:rehabilitation* / Q000601:surgery*