Normative Measurements of Grip and Pinch Strengths of 21st Century Korean Population

BACKGROUND: Measuring grip and pinch strength is an important part of hand injury evaluation. Currently, there are no standardized values of normal grip and pinch strength among the Korean population, and lack of such data prevents objective evaluation of post-surgical recovery in strength. This study was designed to establish the normal values of grip and pinch strength among the healthy Korean population and to identify any dependent variables affecting grip and pinch strength. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was carried out. The inclusion criterion was being a healthy Korean person without a previous history of hand trauma. The grip strength was measured using a Jamar dynamometer. Pulp and key pinch strength were measured with a hydraulic pinch gauge. Intra-individual and inter-individual variations in these variables were analyzed in a standardized statistical manner. RESULTS: There were a total of 336 healthy participants between 13 and 77 years of age. As would be expected in any given population, the mean grip and pinch strength was greater in the right hand than the left. Male participants (137) showed mean strengths greater than female participants (199) when adjusted for age. Among the male participants, anthropometric variables correlated positively with grip strength, but no such correlations were identifiable in female participants in a statistically significant way. CONCLUSIONS: Objective measurements of hand strength are an important component of hand injury evaluation, and population-specific normative data are essential for clinical and research purposes. This study reports updated normative hand strengths of the South Korean population in the 21st century.

Thermal Burn in Patients with Replanted Fingers or Reconstructed Ones with Free Flap

PURPOSE: In order to rehabilitate patients with replanted fingers or reconstructed ones with free flap, the warm therapy is cost-effective, clean, and easy to use. However, the risk of thermal burn in patients with replanted fingers or reconstructed ones with free flap is not clearly identified yet and only few clinical prognosis exist. For that reason, this study was designed to evaluate the incidence, characteristics and risk factors of thermal burn in patients with replanted fingers or reconstructed ones with free flap. METHODS: We reviewed all the medical records of patients retrospectively, especially who showed clinically important thermal burn of replanted fingers or reconstructed ones with free flap from February 2010 to March 2011. RESULTS: 10 patients out of 370 with successfully replanted fingers or reconstructed ones with free flap presented clinically important thermal burn. (2.70% incidence). The causes of thermal burn were warm therapy (4 cases) and touching hot bowls such as a coffee cup, hot pot or hot grill (6 cases). Among them, 7 patients suffered superficial 2nd degree burn with bullae, 1 patient deep 2nd degree burn, 1 patient 4th degree burn and another 1, 1st degree burn with mild erythema. All of them except two cases were treated with conventional dressing with antibiotic ointment, while one was treated by skin graft and another one by 2nd toe pulp free flap. On the other hand, there were only 3 thermal burn cases among 7,010 patients who had undergone the hand surgeries other than replantation and free flap (0.04% incidence). And 2 were by warm therapy and 1 by hot pot. All of them were superficial 2nd degree burn with bullae and treated with conventional dressing with antibiotic ointment for about 1 week. CONCLUSION: These results suggest that patients with replanted fingers or reconstructed ones with free flap are more likely to have thermal burn than any other. Therefore we should be aware of the possibility of thermal burn for these patients, paying more attention to prevent it during the warm therapy and letting them always keep an appropriate distance from anything that can cause thermal burn.