Ms. He is 56 years old this year, usually at home to work, large and small chores are done by herself, so when the fingers suddenly become thicker, she does not care much.
As the fingers became thicker and thicker, the fingertips also began to swell, the whole looked like a drumstick, Ms. He felt that something was wrong, hurried to the hospital for examination, the doctor understood the situation, and suggested that she take a chest CT.
"There is a problem with the fingers, shouldn't you look at the joints?" Why do you suddenly want to shoot CT? Got it wrong, right? Ms. He was surprised, but still performed a chest CT examination according to the doctor's instructions, and after the results were reported, it suggested that Ms. He had an encroachment lesion in her right lung and was diagnosed with lung cancer.
Ms. He is even more puzzled at this point, in this regard, the doctor explained that Ms. He's fingers are abnormally thick, in fact, it is the characteristics of the clubbing fingers, and the clubbing fingers may indicate lung cancer.
First, the appearance of clubbing fingers, vigilance is a sign of the disease
"Pestle-like finger", also known as "drum finger", is mainly manifested as hyperplasia, hypertrophy, and clubbing swelling of the tissue at the end of the finger. It is characterized by a significant widening and thickening of the terminal knuckles, and the arched bulge of the nails from the root to the end, so that the base angle between the skin on the back of the fingertips and the nails is equal to or greater than 180 °.
In general, there is a way to help patients identify the clubbing finger, the "Schamroth sign test". The specific method of this method is to make the subject stick both hands together with the same finger (usually the middle finger) of the stub nail nail surface and the back of the stub knuckle joint, and then observe.
Normally, a diamond-shaped window is formed at the base of the two fingernails, and this gap becomes smaller and disappears when the tulip finger is pointed. However, the results of this method can only be used as a reference.
About 75% to 80% of pestle-like fingers are reported to be seen in lung disease, and when there is lesions in the lungs, airway obstruction, and tissue hypoxia, thickening of surrounding tissues, or clubbing, may occur at the ends of fingers farther from the heart. In addition, patients with lung cancer may have symptoms of clubbing earlier, often preceding other lung cancer symptoms.
In addition, 10% to 15% of pestles are seen in cardiovascular disease, and the remaining 5% to 10% are seen in the digestive system and other diseases. The pathological mechanism that gives rise to the clubbing finger remains controversial, with angiography of most clubbing fingers, an increase in the number and size of terminal knuckle arteries or arteriovenous connections, manifested by excessive formation of blood vessels.
Nails are also a healthy "barometer."
Nails, like a small window, through which many hidden diseases of the human body can be seen. Normal people's nails are smooth, smooth, translucent, uniform reddish, faded and whitened by pressure, and can quickly return to red when released. The female nail end has a slightly curved tip, and the root of the nail has a half moon-like gray-white nail arc, which adds beauty to the nail surface. Changes in the shape, gloss, and color of the nails can reflect the health of the body.
1. Spoon-shaped nails
It appears to be thin decks, spoon-shaped hollows in the middle of the nails, and dull. This means that there may be hyperthyroidism or hyperadenal disease, or it may be caused by exposure to acids and alkalis, oil, and a few people are congenital. People with long-term iron deficiency or rheumatic fever can also develop "spoon nails."
2. Dotted depression
The deck is needle-sized and concave like a thimble, and is common in psoriasis, alopecia areata, etc. Among them, the thimble-like depression of the deck is the most characteristic manifestation of psoriasis, and other features include the appearance of the deck as turbid, yellow, hypertrophic, deformed, some with ridge-like protrusions, and the free end of the nail is separated from the nail bed.
3. Black line
Black armor is mainly characterized by black or brown bands running longitudinally within the deck. Subothyroid bleeding, infection, drugs, benign melanocyte hyperplasia and melanoma can cause the appearance of melanoma, of which the worst clinical prognosis and the most worthy of clinicians' attention is the melanoma of unit A.
4. Color fault
Also known as "Lindsey's nails", it manifests as pink or brown color on the near-nail tip of the nail and white in the first half of the nail. This type of nail, also known as the two-cut nail, may be a sign of chronic kidney failure. Previous studies have shown that of the 25 patients with red, pink or brown bands in 20% to 60% of the distal nail nail beds, 24 were diagnosed with kidney disease.
5. Color change
If the nails suddenly turn white, they are often seen in emergencies such as blood loss and shock, or chronic diseases such as hookworm disease and gastrointestinal bleeding. If the nails are as white as frosted glass, be alert to the characteristics of cirrhosis. If the nails are gray, they are mostly caused by hypoxia and are common in smokers. Non-smokers whose fingernails suddenly turn gray, most likely with nail moss.
Third, the signal of the disease can be found from clues
In addition to nails, the hands also give us many signals about good health. This is because, in addition to flexible bones and muscles, the hand contains a rich collection of peripheral nerves and blood vessels, and its sensitivity exceeds that of most human organs. Therefore, certain pathological changes in the human body can often be manifested through it.
For example, hand shaking in young and middle-aged people may be idiopathic tremor, hyperthyroidism, etc., of which hyperthyroidism is the most likely. If there are frequent hand anesthesia symptoms for a long time, there may be many causes, including diabetes, cerebral ischemia, peripheral neuritis, cervical spondylosis, gout, etc. A detailed examination is required at the hospital to confirm the diagnosis.
In addition, the palm surface and back of the palm of the normal person usually appear reddish, but if the palm appears flaky congestion, plaque, red spots, be careful whether it is a "liver palm" caused by liver lesions. If your hands are often cold, or even the color of your finger skin changes, then this situation may be related to abnormal blood circulation or nervous system problems, please go to the hospital in time for examination.
Understanding the signals of disease and paying attention to disease signals to a large extent determines the outcome of the disease, and even the quality of life and even the length of life of a person. If these disease signals are not detected in time, the optimal treatment opportunity may be lost, causing greater harm to the body.
Resources:
[1] "Is it good to have no crescent at the bottom of the nail". Shanghai Journal of Traditional Chinese Medicine.2021-01-29
[2] Nails, a barometer of health. Public Health Daily.2015-06-09
[3] "Nail Disease Discernment, Reason must be cautious". Family Doctor Report.2009-05-04
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