gms | German Medical Science

14th Triennial Congress of the International Federation of Societies for Surgery of the Hand (IFSSH), 11th Triennial Congress of the International Federation of Societies for Hand Therapy (IFSHT)

17.06. - 21.06.2019, Berlin

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What are the ultrasound features of the trigger finger that may guide management?

Meeting Abstract

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  • presenting/speaker Xue Ling Chuang - Singapore General Hospital Hand Surgery Department, Singapore, Singapore
  • Zeus Lim - Biomechanics Laboratory, Singapore General Hospital, Singapore, Singapore
  • Duncan Angus McGrouther - Singapore General Hospital Hand Surgery Department, Singapore, Singapore

International Federation of Societies for Surgery of the Hand. International Federation of Societies for Hand Therapy. 14th Triennial Congress of the International Federation of Societies for Surgery of the Hand (IFSSH), 11th Triennial Congress of the International Federation of Societies for Hand Therapy (IFSHT), 11th Triennial Congress of the International Federation of Societies for Hand Therapy (IFSHT). Berlin, 17.-21.06.2019. Düsseldorf: German Medical Science GMS Publishing House; 2020. DocIFSSH19-298

doi: 10.3205/19ifssh0540, urn:nbn:de:0183-19ifssh05404

Published: February 6, 2020

© 2020 Chuang et al.
This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License. See license information at http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/.

Outline

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Objectives/Interrogation: To determine dynamic ultrasound features of the trigger finger that may guide the management of the trigger finger. Dynamic imaging was conducted to determine the presence of adherence around and between the flexor tendons.

Methods: 30 trigger fingers and 30 controls from the contralateral hand were examined using high-resolution ultrasound. At a pre-determined anatomical point, the static study investigated the A1 pulley thickness. The dynamic study explored the presence of adhesions around and between the tendons.

Results and Conclusions: The dynamic study yielded findings not previously recorded in medical literature. Firstly, the static study showed that trigger fingers had a thicker A1 pulley as compared to normal fingers. The dynamic study demonstrated that trigger fingers had more adhesions around and between tendons, as compared to normal fingers. Patients with adhesions around the flexor tendons were also more likely to lose differential tendon movement due to adhesions between the tendons. Conversely, those without adhesions around the tendons, were also unlikely to suffer from adhesions between tendons. The dynamic study suggested that the severity of finger stiffness may be reflected by the number of sites with adhesions present, and this may guide future management of the trigger finger.