PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Junichi Nakamura
AU  - Nicola Ann  Halliday
AU  - Eiji Fukuba
AU  - Aleksandra Radjenovic
AU  - Steven F.  Tanner
AU  - Paul Emery
AU  - Dennis McGonagle
AU  - Ai Lyn  Tan
TI  - The Microanatomic Basis of Finger Clubbing — A High-resolution Magnetic Resonance Imaging Study
AID  - 10.3899/jrheum.130823
DP  - 2014 Jan 15
TA  - The Journal of Rheumatology
PG  - jrheum.130823
4099  - http://www.jrheum.org/content/early/2014/01/14/jrheum.130823.short
4100  - http://www.jrheum.org/content/early/2014/01/14/jrheum.130823.full
AB  - Objective Hypervascularization in finger clubbing is recognized, but its microanatomical basis remains unclear. This pilot descriptive study used magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to explore this further. Methods High-resolution MRI acquired with contrast agent was carried out in 4 patients with finger clubbing and 4 healthy volunteers. The anatomy of the nail bed, capsular structures, and bony changes were described. Results Marked nail bed thickening and contrast enhancement was noted in all clubbed fingers, with bone edema in 3 of the 4 patients. None of the healthy subjects had similar abnormalities. Conclusion This confirms that hypervascularization of the nail bed observed in the microanatomy on high-resolution MRI is associated with clubbed appearances of the nails.