A GP guide to paediatric hand trauma
With a shorter window of intervention than adults, it is important to be aware of these common injury patterns of hand trauma in the paediatric population
Paediatric hand trauma is extremely common and results in a range of soft-tissue and bony injuries.
Before considering the common injury patterns in children, it is important to mention that, during the assessment, other injuries should be excluded, immunisation history reviewed and relevant past medical history explored.
A structured physical examination may not be possible, so it is helpful to watch the child playing with toys to examine their hand function.
Fingertip crush injuries are common. These usually result in injury to the nail bed, which if inappropriately managed, can lead to nail deformity or infectious complications.
