Mangaluru: Four amputated fingers rejoined at AJ Hospital

Mangaluru: Four amputated fingers rejoined at AJ Hospital

Mangalore Today News Network

Mangaluru, June 11, 2015: A rare surgery of rejoining of four amputated fingers has been successfully performed by the Plastic Surgery department of A.J Hospital & Research Centre.

Sandeep, 28, from Padubidri, sustained accidental trauma to the left hand resulting in amputation of all four fingers during working. All four amputated fingers were successfully rejoined by Microvascular surgery, which lasted six hours.

 

The Microvascular surgery was conducted by Head of Plastic Surgery Department Doctors Dinesh Kadam along with Sanath Bhandary, Rajesh Hukkeri and anaesthetist Trivikram Tantry.

According to doctors at AJ Hospital, hand injuries continue to dominate workplace accidents and amputations result in severe incapacitation and disability in young men. In this rare injury, all four fingers were completely separated from the hand, which were restored successfully with microvascular surgery.

The successful re-plantation or rejoining of amputated parts requires repair of all structures including bone, tendons, nerves, blood vessels and skin, said Dr. Prashanth Marla K, Medical Director of the hospital adding most important critical step in this procedure is the restoration of blood circulation in each of the fingers with repair of multiple tiny blood vessels under high magnification operative microscope.

"Once the survival of rejoined fingers is ascertained, gradual and sustained physiotherapy is started to restore the finger motion and optimal functional results. The successful outcome depends on many variables like; Type of injury (crush or clean amputation), timing of injury, mode of preservation while transport, availability of expertise and technical difficulties during surgery. The procedure itself takes several hours to perform under the operative microscope," Marla added.

He urged the amputated parts should be transported in a clean polythene bag which is sealed tightly and placed in a container with ice containing water. The parts should not be in direct contact with ice or water.