A refresher on the importance of proper hand trauma evaluation: A Worker's compensation “spaghetti wrist” case report and literature review

Hand trauma continues to be a common injury encountered in the emergency room setting. The severity of these injuries can range from simple lacerations that can be addressed by the emergency room provider to very complex involving multiple soft tissue structures requiring intricate surgical reconstruction. It is fundamental to have a reproducible, accurate strategy to the initial exam of traumatic hand injuries to optimize patient outcomes. We present a worker’s comp case of delayed diagnosis of multiple flexor tendon and median nerve injuries and review the literature on the outcomes after treatment in this scenario.