title: Syndactyly Release.
abstract: Syndactyly is one of the most common congenital hand anomalies treated by pediatric plastic surgeons. Established principles of syndactyly separation dictate the timing and order of syndactyly release, with the goals of surgery being the creation of an anatomically normal webspace, tension-free closure of soft tissue, and return of function to the fingers. Numerous surgical methods have been described, many of which involve the use of local flaps to reconstruct the commissure and full-thickness skin grafts for coverage of raw areas. Recently, reconstructive techniques without the use of skin grafts have been devised, which work well for certain indications. Special considerations are described for complete, complex, and syndromic syndactylies. Outcomes for simple syndactyly release are typically good when surgical principles are followed, whereas complex syndactyly release tends to have less-favorable outcomes and more complications.
authors.affiliation: Division of Plastic Surgery, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas.
authors.forename: Tara L
authors.initials: TL
authors.lastname: Braun
authors.affiliation: Division of Plastic Surgery, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas.
authors.forename: Jeffrey G
authors.initials: JG
authors.lastname: Trost
authors.affiliation: Division of Plastic Surgery, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas.
authors.forename: William C
authors.initials: WC
authors.lastname: Pederson
keywords: commissure reconstruction; congenital hand anomalies; skin graft; syndactyly; web creep