A systematic review of the finger bank technique: what are its limits?

Background When other techniques are unavailable or cannot be performed, the finger bank (FB) procedure becomes viable to reconstruct mutilating hand injuries. The aim of the present study was to synthesize all the current literature and evaluate the studies outcomes using the FB, determining its effectiveness. Methods A comprehensive and systematic literature search was conducted according to the PRISMA guidelines in multiple databases (MEDLINE via PubMed, Virtual Health Library, Embase, Scopus, Scielo, Cochrane, and Lilacs). Results Fifteen articles were included. Although most patients presented functional recovery, the FB technique should be used with caution in skin, bone, and tendon as a tissue bank, considering the limited number of studies in the current literature focusing on these tissues. On the other hand, in cases of joint, nerve, and vessel recovery, the use of FB may be safely recommended. Furthermore, we observed that most procedures were emergency and work-related, in addition to the vast majority of patients being men (90.34%). We found that the FB can be extended to rare non-emergency situations (tumor resection and congenital malformation) and used regardless of clinical features such as age of participants or mechanism of injury. Conclusions Overall, this systematic review highlighted the great prognosis that the FB can offer to traumatic multidigit patients and emphasized the lack of research in this area. Level of evidence: Not gradable