Comparison of Splinting Interventions for Treating Mallet Finger Injuries

NCT00310570 | Unknown

• 1 other identifier: Project 58/06
• Study Type: interventional
• Target: 100
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 1

Brief Summary

Stubbing of the finger-tip is a common injury in sports such as basketball, volleyball, cricket and football. This can result in a Mallet finger deformity, where the end joint of a finger cannot be actively straightened out. In most mallet finger cases seen at The Alfred, the skin remains intact, and the impairment results from a tear of the extensor tendon or an avulsion (a small fracture where the tendon attaches to the bone). Treatment commonly involves immobilising the end joint of the finger in a splint for six or more weeks so patient compliance is a major factor in the quality of the outcome achieved. This study aims to compare two different types of splintage (the commonly used thermoplastic thimble splint and the aluminium-foam "Mexican hat" splint which is in use in Britain) with a control splint (thermoplastic prefabricated "stack splint" with tape). Outcome measures will include patient compliance with the splint, degree of extensor lag, active movement of the joint, and any complications. The null hypothesis is that there are no differences in outcome between different methods of conservative splinting treatment for mallet finger.

Conditions

Mallet Finger

Keywords

distal; interphalangeal; extensor tendon; avulsion

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (1)

• Degree of extensor lag at distal inter-phalangeal (DIP)joint

Secondary Outcomes (5)

• Active range of motion at DIP

• Patient compliance with splinting regime, based on self-report (as described above)

• Patient satisfaction with result on 5-point likert scale

• Complications

• Pain, measured by 10 point Visual Analogue Scale

Interventions

Circumferential thermoplastic thimble splint DEVICE

dorsal aluminium foam "Mexican Hat" splint DEVICE

stack splint (control) DEVICE

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 16 Years - 80 Years
• Sex: all
• Healthy Volunteers: Yes
• Age Groups: Child (0-17), Adult (18-64), Older Adult (65+)

You may not qualify if:

• open injuries
• mallet injury to thumb
• co-existing rheumatologic illness
• time from injury to presentation greater than 2 weeks

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Bayside Health: lead

Study Sites (1)

The Alfred Hospital

Melbourne, Victoria, 3004, Australia

Location

Related Publications (3)

• Wilson SW, Khoo CT. The Mexican hat splint--a new splint for the treatment of closed mallet finger. J Hand Surg Br. 2001 Oct;26(5):488-9. doi: 10.1054/jhsb.2001.0590.

  PMID: 11560435 BACKGROUND

• Handoll HH, Vaghela MV. Interventions for treating mallet finger injuries. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2004;(3):CD004574. doi: 10.1002/14651858.CD004574.pub2.

  PMID: 15266538 RESULT

• O'Brien LJ, Bailey MJ. Single blind, prospective, randomized controlled trial comparing dorsal aluminum and custom thermoplastic splints to stack splint for acute mallet finger. Arch Phys Med Rehabil. 2011 Feb;92(2):191-8. doi: 10.1016/j.apmr.2010.10.035.

  PMID: 21272714 DERIVED

MeSH Terms

Conditions

Fractures, Avulsion

Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Fractures, Bone; Wounds and Injuries

Study Officials

• Lisa O'Brien, M.Clin.Sci

  The Alfred

  PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR

Central Study Contacts

Richard Bloom, MBBS, FRACS

CONTACT

+613 9276 2000; R.Bloom@alfred.org.au

Study Design

• Study Type: interventional
• Phase: not applicable
• Allocation: RANDOMIZED
• Masking: SINGLE
• Purpose: TREATMENT
• Intervention Model: PARALLEL
• Sponsor Type: OTHER GOV

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: April 2, 2006
• First Posted: April 4, 2006
• Study Start: May 1, 2006
• Study Completion: September 1, 2007
• Last Updated: April 4, 2006

Record last verified: 2006-04

Locations

AU (1)