An unusual Pattern of Flexor Digitorum Profundus Avulsion Injury with a Large Extra-articular Bony Fragment

Avulsion injury of the flexor digitorum profundus (FDP) tendon, commonly known as jersey finger, is seen in contact sports players such as rugby and football. There are mainly three patterns of this type of injury as mentioned in the Leddy and Packer classification on the basis of the level of retraction of the tendon. Subsequently, a Type IV injury was added by Smith, where the tendon was also separated from the avulsed bony fragment. It is the level of tendon retraction and the status of the long and the short vincula post-injury that determines the outcome of repair in these types of injuries.

Here, we report an unusual case of jersey finger injury in a 45-year-old male patient, where the FDP tendon was found in front of the middle phalanx with a large, fractured fragment of the middle third of the distal phalanx attached to it. This type of injury pattern has not been acknowledged in the commonly used classification systems. The patient was operated with open reduction and K-wire fixation of the bony fragment with a good functional outcome.

While treating the cases of jersey finger injuries in sports players and general population, one should be aware of such rare patterns which can then be easily managed with proper pre-operative planning.