Finger grafting surgery is performed by surgeons on patients who fingerhis disconnected. In severe conditions, finger grafting surgery may not be possible, it can even be done aamputation so as not to disturb ability sufferers withactivity by hand.
The surgeon will try to reconnect the part of the finger that was severed through surgery. However, not all broken fingers can be reattached. The surgeon will first conduct an examination to determine whether the severed finger can be reattached or not.
How to Give Relief to a Broken Finger
Before talking further about finger reattachment surgery, you need to know how to help a severed finger.
In general, there are 3 things that need to be considered in handling a broken finger, starting from performing first aid on a broken finger, treating an injured hand, to performing treatment on a severed finger.
First aid
The first aid you need to do if you experience or see someone else experiencing a broken finger is as follows:
- If the injury is caused by a machine, turn off the machine immediately.
- Do not remove jewelry or clothing that is stuck to the injury site.
- Perform wound care on the injured hand.
- Ask someone else to take care of the severed finger.
- Immediately call an ambulance or go to the hospital for help.
Wound care for injured hands
In the severed hand or base of the finger, the first aid that needs to be done is:
- Rinse the wound with water or sterile saline
- Cover the wound with sterile gauze or dressing
- Position the injured hand higher than the heart to reduce bleeding and swelling
- Press the wound to stop the bleeding
- Don't press or bandage the wound too tightly to keep blood flowing to the surrounding tissue
Finger cut treatment
If someone else can help, ask that person to treat the severed finger. The method is as follows:
- Wash the cut off with water or a sterile saline solution. Do it gently and avoid rubbing the finger pieces.
- Wrap the finger with wet gauze to keep it moist, but not too wet or submerged in water.
- Place your finger in a clean waterproof bag and place the bag in a plastic bag.
- Place a plastic bag on top of the ice. Try not to cut the finger in direct contact with the ice because the tissue can be damaged.
If more than one finger is severed, place each finger piece in a separate clean bag. The goal is to prevent infection and tissue damage to the cut finger.
When is Broken Finger Surgery Performed?
Surgical reattachment of a severed finger (finger replantation) is usually performed if the finger is broken in less than 12 hours. If the injury is further into the hand or arm, the connection time will be shorter, because the muscle tissue must be reconnected within 6 hours of the injury.
The main purpose of splicing a broken finger is to restore the ability to grip. This grasping ability can be done when the hand has a thumb and at least two other fingers. If the cut is a thumb or several fingers, then finger splicing efforts need to be done.
However, not all broken fingers can be reattached. There are several conditions that cause finger grafting surgery cannot be performed, namely:
- Fingers crushed or dirty
A crushed or contaminated (dirty) finger usually has a lot of tissue damage and is difficult to reattach. This condition often occurs in injuries from lawn mowers, chainsaws, or farm implements.
- The injury has been going on for too longA finger that has been severed for more than 12 hours has suffered so much tissue damage that it cannot be reattached.
In addition, there are also several considerations not to perform the operation of splicing a severed finger, including:
- Only one finger is cut off and not the thumb, so it doesn't interfere with gripping
- Injuries occur at the fingertips where the wound's ability to heal is good enough so that it can heal on its own
Although surgery to reattach the severed finger cannot be performed, the patient still needs to undergo surgery to repair the wound. Sometimes, the surgeon will need to take skin from another part of the body to cover a cut on the patient's finger or hand.
The severed finger can be reattached with finger grafting surgery, or it may not. This depends on the condition and duration of the wound. Proper first aid can increase the chances of a severed finger being reattached.
However, prevention is certainly better than cure. To avoid injury at work that could result in broken fingers, always obey the safety rules and use the recommended personal protective equipment.
Written by:
dr. Sonny Seputra, M.Ked.Klin, SpB, FINACS
(Surgeon Specialist)
