Prognostic Factors for Attempted Finger Replantation and Revascularisation after Traumatic Amputation: A 16-Year Retrospective Cohort Study

Abstract

Background: The aim of this study was to evaluate the impact of variant factors on finger replantation and revascularisation after traumatic amputation, which also included duty shift and the level of main operator. Methods: To determine the prognostic factors for the survival rate of finger replantation and revascularisation after traumatic finger amputation, we retrospectively reviewed the cases of finger replantation conducted from January 2001 to December 2017. Data collected consisted of the basic information of the patients, trauma-related factors, details of the operation and treatment outcomes. Descriptive statistics and data analysis was performed to assess outcomes. Results: In total, 150 patients with 198 replanted digits were enrolled in this study. The median age of the participants was 42.5 years, and 132 (88%) patients were men. The overall successful replantation rate was 86.4%. Seventy-three (36.9%) digits had Yamano type 1 injury; 110 (55.6%), Yamano type 2 injury and 15 (7.6%), Yamano type 3 injury. In total, 73 (36.9%) digits were completely amputated and 125 (63.1%) were not. Half of the replantation procedures (101, 51.0%) were performed during night shift (16:00–00:00), 69 (34.8%) during day shift (08:00–16:00) and 28 (14.1%) during graveyard shift (00:00–08:00). Multivariate logistic regression demonstrated that the trauma mechanism and type of amputation (complete vs. incomplete) significantly affect the survival rate of replantation. Conclusions: The trauma mechanism and type of amputation (complete vs. incomplete) significantly affect the survival rate of replantation. Other factors including duty shift and the level of operator did not reach statistically significance. Further studies must be conducted to validate the results of the current study. Level of Evidence: Level III (Prognostic)