Infektionen der Hand.

The hand as a tactile organ is continuously exposed to pathogens with the risk of developing severe hand infection. Bacterial infections are encountered most frequently. Next to severe soft tissue trauma, small lesions with or without foreign body entrapment often prove to be the causative agents for hand infections. Bite wounds caused by humans or animals are in particular prone to spread of infection as they lead to a deep bacterial inoculation in the different anatomical spaces of the hand. In order to prevent severe infection initial diagnosis and adequate treatment is of major importance. Surgical treatment is primarily indicated with radical debridement of all affected structures. Delayed diagnosis by temporizing treatment strategies can lead to fulminant infection with functional deficits or in the end to septic shock with multiple organ failure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]