J Wound Manag Res.  2021 Feb;17(1):62-66. 10.22467/jwmr.2020.01333.

Negative-Pressure Wound Therapy for a Replanted Finger with Complicated Wound

• Roh SY
• Park I
• Lee KJ
• Koh SH
• Kim JS

• KMID: 2513926
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.22467/jwmr.2020.01333

Abstract

Negative-pressure wound therapy (NPWT) is widely used for open wounds in various anatomical sites. Extensive research has been carried out on the application of NPWT; exposed blood vessels in the periwound area are a known contraindication to NPWT. In this study, we report a case where a replanted finger with not only exposed vessels but also uncontrolled infection was treated with NPWT. A 60-year-old man visited our emergency department with incomplete amputation of his left index and middle fingers. After replantation of his two fingers, necrosis of the middle finger with severe methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus infection complicated managing the wound. After 3 weeks of maintaining conventional wound dressings, we performed NPWT for successful granulation tissue formation and infection control. After the treatment, the wound was completely covered by a split-thickness skin graft. We thus suggest that NPWT can be an effective reconstructive method, including for intractable wounds with exposed pedicle and severe infection after replantation.

Keyword

Negative-pressure wound therapy; Replantation; Hand reconstruction; Infection