Abstract
Nail punctures through rubber-soled shoes expose the foot to the possibility of deep
infection and foreign body retention. In this article, we describe characteristics
of adult patients who sustained nail puncture wounds through a rubber-soled shoe and
were treated at our institution from January 1, 2000, to January 8, 2008. Of the 96
patients, 36 (37.5%) were treated conservatively and 60 (62.5%) were treated surgically
in the operating room. Of those treated surgically, 15 (25%) had a foreign body extracted
during the operation. The operated group had a longer duration of time from injury
to hospital admission than did the nonoperated group (5.0 ± 6.8 days versus 2.7 ±
3.8 days, P < .05). Treatment success was observed in 91 (94.8%) of the patients, and the median
lag time before admission for the less successfully treated group was longer than
that for the successfully treated group (10 days versus 2 days, P < .002); and, the less successfully treated group was more likely to receive antibiotics
in the community before hospitalization (100.0% versus 47.2%, P < .06), and was more likely to be diabetic (40.0% versus 9.9%, P < .10). Fever, white blood cell count, and erythrocyte sedimentation rate were not
significantly associated with treatment outcome. Success of the treatment did not
depend on white blood cell count, erythrocyte sedimentation rate, or fever. Ultrasonography
was useful in detecting the presence of a foreign body.
Level of Clinical Evidence
Keywords
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Article info
Footnotes
Financial Disclosure: None reported.
Conflict of Interest: None reported.
Identification
Copyright
© 2010 American College of Foot and Ankle Surgeons. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
