What began as a September incident with a pair of shorts spiraled into a harrowing medical ordeal that nearly cost Rener Gracie part of his finger, and ultimately delivered what he calls “the best Christmas gift I have ever received.”
While adjusting his clothing, Gracie’s finger became caught in his pocket, instantly tearing the extensor tendon in his left middle finger.
“I’ve been training my whole life and I’ve never had a serious finger injury and then I’m adjusting my shorts sliding my hand down the side of my shorts and the tip gets stuck in my pocket and that’s what snaps my tendon unbelievable,”
the martial arts instructor explained in a detailed video a little while ago.
The initial injury resulted in mallet finger, a condition where the affected digit droops and cannot straighten due to severed tendon connection. Rather than opting for the conservative six-to-ten-week splinting approach, Gracie chose surgical intervention.
“There’s also a surgery we can do where we inject we embed two pins straight through the bones of your fingertip and it locks it out so it’s like a permanent splint and I did that yesterday,”
he revealed, showing the surgical entry points.
But this was merely the beginning of his troubles.
Three weeks after the pin insertion surgery, Gracie traveled to London with his brother. During a demonstration, he accidentally struck his finger forcefully. The consequences would prove severe.
Ten days later, his finger swelled dramatically.
“My finger blows up like a strawberry,”
Gracie recounted. Medical examination revealed a suspected infection, prompting emergency surgery to remove the pins. The impact in London had actually bent the metal pins inside his finger.
Post-surgery x-rays delivered alarming news: Gracie had developed a bone infection. Doctors prescribed six weeks of antibiotics delivered through a PICC line, a catheter inserted into his arm that “goes straight to my heart for 42 days.”
The treatment successfully eliminated the infection and the bone regenerated strongly. However, the combined trauma from the impact and infection had caused the bones to fuse together. Medical professionals delivered discouraging news:
“At that point, I was told that I would never regain flexion in the tip of my finger, and that I should just accept it as it was.”
For someone whose life revolves around Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, this presented an unacceptable reality. The fused joint meant that any body weight landing on the finger during training without protective splinting would likely break it and destroy the joint. Gracie faced an agonizing choice: abandon unrestricted rolling on the mats or remove the damaged fingertip entirely.
“After several weeks of internal deliberation, I made my decision and I communicated it to my wife in the form of a very simple text. How long should you keep a finger that you know you’re not going to keep forever?”
he shared.
Gracie’s willingness to undergo amputation purely to continue practicing the martial art he loves speaks volumes about his dedication.
“I was 100% prepared to cut it off purely for the love of jiu-jitsu,”
he stated plainly.
Referred to a leading hand surgeon, Gracie received unexpected pushback. After reviewing the x-rays, the specialist insisted on attempting to salvage the finger rather than proceeding with amputation.
On December 23rd, the surgeon performed an intricate procedure.
The outcome exceeded all expectations. Though facing several weeks of healing and rehabilitation, initial results suggest Gracie will retain full use of his finger, a remarkable turnaround from September’s pocket-related mishap.
