@article{article_190444, title={Comparison of immobilization and early passive motion in the treatment of complex extensor tendon injuries}, journal={Acta Orthopaedica et Traumatologica Turcica}, volume={35}, pages={28–34}, year={2006}, DOI={10.3944/aott.v35i1.1831}, author={Ademoglu, Yalcin and Arikan, Gulin and Kaplan, Ibrahim and Ada, Sait and Kul, Firdevs and Enhos, Aysel}, keywords={biomechanics;finger injuries/therapy/rehabilitation;hand injuries/surgery/rehabilitation;immobilization;movement;rupture;splints;tendon injuries/therapy/rehabilitation}, abstract={Objectives: This study was designed to evaluate the functional results in patients who underwent surgery for complex extensor tendon lacerations in zones V to VII and treated either by immobilization or early passive motion (EPM). Methods: Eleven patients (31 fingers) were treated by immobilization and nine patients (18 fingers) were treated by the EPM protocol. In the immobilization group, static palmar splints (wrist extension 30-40°; metacarpophalangeal and interphalangeal joints 0°) were used for four weeks. In the EPM group, dynamic splints and an outtrigger splint were applied to hold the wrist 30-40° extended and the metacarpophalangeal and interphalangeal joints in neutral and rubber band-assisted extension and active flexion was started three to five days postoperatively. After a mean follow-up of 22 months, total active motion and extensor lag of each involved finger, grip strength, and duration for return to pre-injury activity were evaluated. Results: No tendon ruptures occurred. Total active motion of the involved fingers (215°±39.6° vs 241°±36.6°) and duration for return to pre-injury activity (17.8 weeks vs 14.7 weeks) differed significantly in favor of the EPM group (p <0.05). However, no significant difference was observed in grip strength (p>0.05). According to the Miller classification, good and/or excellent results accounted for 32.2% and 61% in the immobilization and EPM groups, respectively.
Conclusion: The study showed that EPM was more effective than the immobilization method in the treatment of complex extensor tendon injuries in zones V to VII.}, number={1}, publisher={Turkish Association of Orthopaedics and Traumatology}