[The cleft hand. Proposal of a classification based on 279 cleft hands]

We propose a new classification of cleft hand based on the analysis of our own cases and a literature search.

We analysed clinical data and radiographs of 31 patients with 54 cleft hands in addition to 225 cleft hands from the literature, and classified them with the help of schematic drawings of radiographs in extension of the proposals of Blauth and Schneider-Sickert.

Classification of cleft hand: 1. Median cleft hands without involvement of thumb and small finger. 2. Medioradial cleft hands with thumb affected but with detectable residuals preserved. 3. Radial cleft hands with thumb aplasia. Medioulnar cleft hands with small finger affected but detectable residuals preserved. 5. Ulnar cleft hands with small finger aplasia. Median cleft hands more frequently appear unilateral and are more seldom combined with cleft feet as medioradial and radial cleft hands. In radiographs, aplasia predominate in radial cleft hands while synostoses often appear in median cleft hands.

The new classification enables us to arrange the great diversity of this malformation and takes medioulnar and ulnar cleft hands into account.