Gracie is an 11- year old who had a pollicization 3 months ago for her hypoplastic (small) thumb. Compared to the typical patient treated with a pollicization, Gracie is unusual because she was much older at the time of her surgery. Gracie’s age at the time of surgery does bring a few challenges mainly because she has been using her four finger hand with her ‘small’ thumb for her entire 11 years. However, she came to realize the challenges of life without a highly functional thumb- her thumb did not function . The thumb is key for large object grasp such as grasping a soda can which is impossible with the fingers for most of us. Additionally, the thumb allows fine pinch- also very difficult with the fingers. Gracie and her family elected to proceed with the surgery. Below find pictures before and immediately after surgery.
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| Hypoplastic thumb before surgery |
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| Hypoplastic thumb before surgery |
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| New thumb immediately after surgery |
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| New thumb immediately after surgery |
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| New thumb immediately after surgery |
I recently saw Gracie in the office 3- months after her surgery. She is an impressive and dynamic 11 year old and agreed to share her thoughts on video. She is very excited about the results of the surgery. Her thumb is working great and will continue to get better. I wanted to capture Gracie on video as her words may help parents considering this surgery for their child.
I hope these pictures and, more importantly, this video are both helpful for families considering the pollicization procedure!
Charles A. Goldfarb, MD
My Bio at Washington University
congenitalhand@wudosis.wustl.edu
Thank you so much for everything you have done for gracie! She is now able to tie her shoes and button her pants with her new thumb and its only been 12 weeks! We can't wait to see what else she can do. We are so grateful for everyone at Washington University.
Brandie- thank you for writing. I am so happy that Gracie is doing well!
My son is 14 and looking to get this procedure done. Im unable to see the video but very happy to know Gracie is happy and doing well.
Kim,
Thank you for writing. Good luck with your son’s care. It is not common to perform Pollicization in teenagers and, at least in my mind, it is even more important to find an experienced surgeon with expertise in this procedure. Here is the video link: https://youtu.be/zfVDIJ–9-M