Perceptions of finger-amputated hand appearance and its effects on social life from the perspectives of affected and unaffected individuals

Abstract

Aims: Traumatic finger amputation leads to dysfunction and disfigurement of the hand. Hand disfigurements can affect the social lives of affected individuals. The purpose of this study was to investigate affected and unaffected individuals' perceptions of finger-amputated hand appearance and its effects on social life. Methods: A group of 26 finger-amputated individuals completed a questionnaire assessing the impact of their hand appearance on their social lives and rated their hand appearance using a visual analogue scale (VAS). Hand photographs of members of this group were shown to 50 unaffected individuals, who were asked to rate their appearance using the VAS and complete a questionnaire assessing their reactions to similar hands encountered during daily life. Results: In the patient group, the mean VAS and questionnaire scores were 5.1±2 (range: 1–10), and 60.3±17 (range: 31–94), respectively. In the assessor group, the mean VAS score for all 26 hand photographs was 7.1±2 (range: 3–9) and the mean questionnaire score was 83.6±11 (range: 56–100). While the patients' and assessors' VAS scores were significantly correlated for each hand photograph (r=0.511, p=0.008), in total, 21 of the 26 VAS scores were lower for the patient than assessor group. The VAS and questionnaire scores in the patient group improved significantly with time since amputation (p =.00 and p=0.011, respectively). Conclusion: The self-evaluation results of the affected group were worse than those of the unaffected group in terms of perceptions of appearance and the resultant effects on their social lives. We conclude that individuals without finger-amputated hands perceived hand disfigurements less negatively than affected patients. This knowledge may aid the psychosocial support of patients with hand anomalies.