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The clearest symptom of boutonnière deformity is a bend in your finger that you can’t straighten out. This symptom can start as soon as you are injured, or it might take a few weeks to appear. Other symptoms can be related to the injury that causes the deformity and might include:
If you have a boutonnière deformity, you should see a healthcare provider as soon as possible. If it’s not treated, the bend in your finger can get worse over time, and you might even have permanent problems using your fingers and hands. Since the boutonnière deformity is caused by damage to the hand, you might also have other symptoms or injuries that also need a healthcare provider’s care.
The most common causes of this deformity are injuries and rheumatoid arthritis.
If your healthcare provider thinks you have boutonnière deformity, they will ask you some questions and do a physical exam of your finger and hands. Questions your healthcare provider might ask include:
Your healthcare provider might also order imaging tests, like x-rays, to take pictures of your finger and look for any other problems like broken bones or slipped tendons. These tests will help your symptoms are caused by boutonniere deformity or a similar injury.
If your healthcare provider diagnoses you with boutonnière deformity, they might suggest a few different treatment options:
Sometimes, this deformity is caused by conditions that you can’t prevent, like rheumatoid arthritis. However, injury is also a common cause of this condition. Taking some commonsense safety steps can help reduce the chance that your finger will be hurt. These include:
A boutonnière [BOOT-tuhn-yehr] deformity is a condition that causes the middle joint of your finger to stay bent while the tip of your finger bends back. If you have this condition, you might not be able to straighten out your finger, even if you try. This condition can happen because of rheumatoid [ROO-muh-toyd] arthritis (RA) or osteoarthritis [ah-STEE-oh-AR-thry-TIS]. It can also happen if the tendons in your finger are hit or cut (for instance, if your hand gets stepped on or crushed in a door). When this happens, the boutonniere deformity can be called a “jammed finger”.
Similar Problems
Mallet finger is a similar finger deformity that can be caused when a ball or other object hits that tip of your finger or thumb. Sometimes, this blow can be strong enough to tear the tendon that straightens the finger, which can make it bend without you being able to straighten it.