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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A comparison of hand function in Colles and Scaphoid casts using a technologically updated Jebsen Hand Function test

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  • presenting/speaker Anuhya Vusirikala - University College Hospital, London, United Kingdom
  • Daniel Williams - University College Hospital, London, United Kingdom
  • Hui Fen Koo - University College Hospital, London, United Kingdom
  • Joseph Godwin - University College Hospital, London, United Kingdom
  • Leticia Costalago - University College Hospital, London, United Kingdom
  • Georgina Erdos - University College Hospital, London, United Kingdom
  • Jonathan Esposito - University College Hospital, London, United Kingdom
  • Anthea Davy - University College Hospital, London, United Kingdom

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. DocIFSSH19-577

doi: 10.3205/19ifssh0600, urn:nbn:de:0183-19ifssh06001

Published: February 6, 2020

© 2020 Vusirikala 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 investigate the impact of Colles and Scaphoid casts on hand function, assessed using the Jebsen Hand Function test (JHFT) with additional technological subtests.

Methods: The JHFT is an objective measure of hand function, consisting of 7 subtests which reflect activities of daily living. 4 additional subtests were created to assess the impact of the casts on the use of technology. These included (1) texting on a mobile phone, (2) typing on a keyboard, (3) using a computer mouse to point and drag, and (4) using a computer mouse to scroll. 20 healthy volunteers were assessed completing the JHFT and additional subtests without immobilisation, in a Colles cast and in a Scaphoid cast. The data was analysed using a paired t test.

Results: The average age of the participants was 28 years (10 male, 10 female). Immobilisation (Colles or Scaphoid) prolonged task completion times of all subtests of the JHFT. In all the JHFT subtests, volunteers performed worse in a Scaphoid than in a Colles cast. In 5 of the 7 JHFT subtests this reached statistical significance (p< 0.05). Immobilisation (Colles or Scaphoid) also prolonged mean task completion times of the technologically updated subtests. Although mean task completion times were greater for the Scaphoid cast than the Colles cast this was not statistically significant. Volunteers often demonstrated adaptations in technique to accommodate immobilisation of the wrist or thumb.

Conclusions: Scaphoid casts have a greater impact on hand function than Colles casts. This was most evident in tasks involving fine motor movements and forearm rotation. The technologically updated subtests confirmed the negative effect of immobilisation, but immobilisation of the thumb did not produce a statistically significant difference when comparing types of cast.