Mallet finger: long-term review of 100 cases.

One hundred cases of mallet finger are reviewed to assess the significance of the results of treatment. This study revealed that the mallet fingers with chip fractures and those without fractures showed satisfactory results in 85% of cases in the long term (32 months) with conservative treatment. Even though there was a statistically significant difference between the satisfied and unsatisfied patients in extensor lag (P less than 0.0001), arc of movement (P greater than 0.001) and pinch grip (P greater than 0.001), none of these patients was willing to undergo surgery to improve their fingers.