Firework hand trauma
Today’s case we have this severe hand injury! This 15 year old male was playing with some homemade fireworks when...kaboom! The explosion resulted in this severely mangled right hand, which is unfortunately his dominant side. To orient yourself a little better, the pinky is to the left, index to the right, and thumb is completely disarticulated and hanging toward the bottom of the picture. The team opted to amputate the hand at the wrist after extensive examination of the wound. You could argue that the index and pinky fingers had a chance to be salvaged, however, the extent of the surgery would be vast. From this picture, it seems that the damage extends into the wrist, effecting the flexor muscles, which would greatly increase the difficulty of the salvaging. I think they made a great decision to amputate when weighing the risks vs the benefits! This type of injury was one that my parents always warned against every 4th of July. This is a lesson for everyone...leave the fireworking to the professionals, who use mass produced explosives and take all necessary safety precautions!
Source: https://instagram.com/p/BhIUD25g7NP/