ABSTRACT
Mallet finger and baseball finger are the terms now used synonymously to depict the flexion deformity of the distal interphalangeal joint caused by rupture of the extensor tendon (Figure 1). Originally, however, they were used as opposites. Robert Abbe 1 (surgeon to St Luke’s Hospital, New York) described ‘two deformities of the end joint of the fingers … which need the earliest surgical care’ in 1894. The first (mallet finger) he called ‘drop finger’ finding that the ‘extensor tendon … had torn away from its delicate attachment to the base of the last joint.’ The second (baseball finger) he said was the ‘reverse deformity … very commonly seen in baseball players. The last joint is violendy dislocated backward and cannot be replaced, on account of the flexor tendons wrapping themselves round the head of the proximal bone of the joint.’ British authors used the terms interchangeably as early as 1931. Harry Plan, senior surgeon at Ancoats Hospital, Manchester, said ‘This injury has been frequendy observed in baseball players and in cricketers … the dropped phalanx and the lack of extension … constitute the typical mallet finger.’ 2 This injury can be seen in many different sports where the finger tip is subject to jamming or sudden bending including baseball, basketball, volleyball and football. Typical radiographic appearance of mallet finger (author’s case) https://s3-euw1-ap-pe-df-pch-content-public-p.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/9781003076568/34c29fd5-5662-4e8f-b58c-badd7fa5d724/content/fig51_1_B.jpg"/>
