Quick thinking helps man regain severed digit

Surgeon urges quick intervention even in minor accidents to avoid lasting trauma

Quick thinking on the part of a 25-year-old Nepalese expat, who was admitted to Zulekha Hospital Dubai, with a severed finger, turned out to crucial as a surgical team was able to reconstruct the digit that had been crushed after getting caught in a vehicle’s sliding door.

Sudip Adhikari rushed to the hospital with the severed finger but took care to preserve it in ice while he got there. Initial examinations revealed a loss of the nail bed and pulp tissue on the damaged middle finger.

Dr Srikanth Varma Racherla, Specialist Orthopedic Surgeon at Zulekha Hospital Dubai, decided that an urgent surgical procedure was required to reconstruct the pulp and nail bed in order to rebuild the lost anatomy.

The surgical procedure called ‘Graft Reposition over the Flap’ [GRF] was used to reconstruct the amputated fingertip. In this technique, the nail bed was taken from the amputated fingertip as a graft and used to reconstruct the lost nail bed. The pulp reconstruction was done using cross finger flap (CFF), with skin harvested from the adjacent finger. The CFF was used to restore the sensation and original form needed for pain-free functioning of the digit.

“This could happen to anyone while closing and opening any door or window. Mr Adhikari made a courageous and smart decision to keep the amputated part of his finger in ice as it made it possible to regain the original form and function of the finger. We advise all who experience similar incidents to do the same as recovery may not be possible if the amputated part is not well preserved,” said Dr Racherla.

Mr Adhikari made a courageous and smart decision to keep the amputated part of his finger in ice as it made it possible to regain the original form and function of the finger.”

Initial shock

Dr. Srikanth Racherla (left) | Surgeon

The patient explained that when he first saw his severed finger, he thought that he had lost it permanently. “When I came to Zulekha Hospital and met with Dr Srikanth, I regained the hope of getting back the normal finger, after he suggested the options available to me,” said Adhikari. The flap division procedure was completed after two weeks and the patient recovered good function both in the donor and recipient fingers.