Assessment of digital clubbing in medical inpatients by digital photography and computerized analysis.

摘要: BACKGROUND Digital clubbing has been associated with a large number of disorders. To overcome the limitation subjective clinical assessment, several objective measurements have developed among which hyponychial angle was considered most accurate for quantification finger clubbing. METHODS AND RESULTS Here we investigated angles in 123 healthy subjects and 515 medical inpatients from tertiary hospital. Healthy had mean 178.87 +/- 4.70 degrees (range: 164.78-192.10 ), finding that is well accordance previous results obtained using other techniques, underlining accuracy chosen method assessment. The patients 181.65 7.18 162.22-209.19; p <0.0001 compared to controls). When upper limit normality, i.e. 192.10 degrees, used define digital clubbing, prevalence our 8.9%; percentage clubbed fingers varied substantially various disease states (up 80% cystic fibrosis). CONCLUSION use photography computerised analysis found be an easy, fast inexpensive excellent intra inter observer reliability whilst causing no discomfort patients. This tool may therefore useful further longitudinal cross-sectional studies morphology become accepted standard diagnosis