Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40182861›Full record

ArticleJournal of hand surgery global online2025

Surgical Firework Injury of the Thumb: Injury Pattern and Treatment Algorithm.

David Cardenas, Muhammad Harirah, Anca Dogaroiu, Brandon Bruce, Andrei Odobescu, Douglas Sammer, Andrew Y Zhang

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Journal of hand surgery global online, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed.

  1. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

7 authors.

David CardenasDepartment of Plastic Surgery, The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas, Dallas, TX.
Muhammad HarirahDepartment of Plastic Surgery, The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas, Dallas, TX.
Anca DogaroiuDepartment of Plastic Surgery, The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas, Dallas, TX.
Brandon BruceDepartment of Plastic Surgery, The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas, Dallas, TX.
Andrei OdobescuDepartment of Plastic Surgery, The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas, Dallas, TX.
Douglas SammerDepartment of Plastic Surgery, The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas, Dallas, TX.
Andrew Y ZhangDepartment of Plastic Surgery, The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas, Dallas, TX.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Purpose: Firework blast trauma most commonly affects the hands and occurs along a spectrum of severity ranging from minor burns to mangling injuries. This study presents a retrospective chart review of patients surgically treated for upper-extremity firework injuries at a major metropolitan level-l trauma center with a focus on injuries involving the thumb. A detailed treatment algorithm is proposed based on patterns of injuries with an additional two illustrative cases. Methods: Patients who underwent surgical management for firework-related hand injuries at a level-1 trauma center between January 2009 and December 2023 were retrospectively reviewed for demography, injury pattern, and treatment. Two cases involving the thumb and first web space injuries were selected for the case series. General descriptive statistics were performed. Results: Seventy-four patients who sustained severe firework blast injuries to the hand were reviewed. Thumb injuries were treated in 59 patients (80%). A majority of these, 52 patients involved both the thumb and the first web space (88%). A wide range of surgical treatments were employed, and often, several different techniques were used for the case. Amputation (60%, n = 45) was performed most frequently, followed by skin grafting (36%, n = 27) and primary closure (32%, n = 24). Local and free flaps were performed in 35% (n = 26) of the cases. Conclusions: A majority of surgical firework injuries to the hand involve the thumb and first web space. It is paramount to preserve or restore length, sensation, mobility of the thumb, and a supple first web space. Proximal thumb injuries tend to require more aggressive treatment of the first web space. In case of devastating proximal injuries involving the carpometacarpal joint, creating a stable and well-positioned sensate post is acceptable. We propose a treatment algorithm for the management of thumb and first web space blast injuries. Type of study/level of evidence: Therapeutic IIIB.

Indexed as

AmputationBlastFireworksHandThumb

Identifiers

PMID40182861
PMCPMC11963034

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY-NC-ND
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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.