trauma to the finger or the hand is one of the most common types of injury resulting in deformity , altered aesthetics and psychological disturbances . although this is the first choice of treatment , however when it is contraindicated or unaffordable , the prosthetic rehabilitation of the amputed part is considered for improving the aesthetics and the psychological status of the patient . however , these prostheses are primarily designed for aesthetic rehabilitation , nevertheless they can also improve the function due to the restoration of normal shape and length of the finger , and transferring sensations such as pressure . this case report describes a simple technique for fabricating silicon finger prosthesis for a patient after an accident in childhood a male patient aged 23 years , reported to the prosthodontics department for the reconstruction of the missing thumb of the left hand due to an accident 10 years back . it was decided to place implant retained finger prosthesis ; however , patient was not ready for any surgical intervention . a thin layer of petroleum jelly was applied on the patient 's hand to prevent adherence of the impression material to hair and skin . a plastic container having adequate clearance of at least 5 mm around for the impression material and of sufficient length to cover the hand was used to confine the impression material . india ) was manipulated using cold water to increase the working time and was poured into the containers . the patient was asked to dip his hand vertically into the container taking care that the sides or the bottom of the container was not in contact . after the material was set , the hand was removed quickly in a jerking motion . this impression was poured with dental stone ( kalrock , kalabhai karson , mumbai , india ) to obtain the cast [ figure 2 ] . dental stone model of the left hand with amputed thumb an impression of the right hand of the patient was also made and used as a guide to carve and make wax pattern of the missing thumb . wax pattern made was hollowed from the inside by sculpting and placed on the amputed finger cast . during try - in , the length and fit of the wax pattern was verified and checked for harmony with the adjacent fingers [ figure 3 ] . necessary modifications were then made to improve the adaptation of the wax patterns to the remaining stump to improve mechanical retention ; the anatomy was then checked and refined to improve aesthetics . try - in of the wax pattern of thumb prosthesis while flasking the inner surface of the wax pattern was poured separately , and indexing was done to reorient the stump after dewaxing procedure . reduction of 1 - 1.5 mm was done on the stump all around and was reoriented on the obtained mold [ figure 4 ] . this produced a prosthesis , which was smaller in diameter by 1 - 1.5 mm and it stretched over the amputated stump to provide retention . the room temperature vulcanizing silicone ( mp sai enterprises , mumbai , india ) was intrinsically pigmented according to the skin of the patient . the base color was dispensed , and intrinsic stains were mixed to achieve the desired shade . color matching of the dorsal and ventral surface was done separately in natural light [ figure 5 ] . once the final prosthesis was retrieved , the excess material was trimmed with scissors and final finishing was accomplished using silicone burs . color matching with the contralateral thumb an artificial nail was fabricated with cold cure clear acrylic resin which was characterized using intrinsic stains . the acrylic nail was finished , polished and stained extrinsically to obtain white margins and other details . the size and position of the acrylic nail were established , cynoacrylate adhesive was then applied on the under surface of the nail for bonding with a silicone surface [ figure 6 ] . the fit and appearance of the prosthesis were checked in the patient [ figure 7 ] and the patient was instructed about the maintenance of the prosthesis . various materials such as wood , clay , leather , enameled porcelain , acrylic resin and silicone elastomers are used in the fabrication of extraoral prosthesis . among these acrylic resin can be easily characterized and presents great durability , but is hard and uncomfortable to the patient . while silicone has texture and flexibility similar to the skin and is more comfortable to the patient . moreover , a clear to translucent silicone rubber is compatible with all the intrinsic and extrinsic coloring systems available . due to several of these desirable features silicon finger prostheses was a viable method for restoring amputated fingers in our case . the use of silicon finger prostheses is a viable method for restoring amputated fingers as it provides comfort , improvement in function , the psychological advantage , and desirable cosmetic outcome .
creating prosthesis , having realistic skin surface and seamless visual integration with the surrounding tissues , requires both artistic and technical skill . anatomical design , thin margins , lifelike fingernails and realistic color / contours are essential for patient satisfaction . 
 prosthesis is especially useful in case of lost body parts , as reconstructive surgery can not fully restore aesthetics . 
 this case report describes a simple technique for fabricating silicon finger prosthesis for a patient .