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Syndrome Involving Club Feet & Hands

"Clubbing" and "clubfoot" are two unrelated conditions involving deformities of the hands, feet, fingers and toes. The two have different features and causes, according to the Merck Manual.

  1. Clubbing

    • Clubbing refers to an enlargement of the tips of the fingers or toes and a loss of the angle where the nails emerge.

    Clubfoot

    • Clubfoot is a congenital deformity in which the foot is twisted out of shape or position. In older children, clubfoot may be caused by injury.

    Statistics

    • In adults, 75 percent to 85 percent of clubbing is due to pulmonary disease and the resultant hypoxia, according to the "Encyclopedia and Dictionary of Medicine, Nursing, and Allied Health."

    Linked Disorders

    • Clubbing is sometimes the result of heart disease or disorders of the liver or gastrointestinal tract. Clubbing may also be an early stage of hypertrophic osteoarthritis.

    Considerations

    • Clubfoot is sometimes the result of the foot being twisted due to the fetus' position in the uterus; however, this is not true clubfoot, according to the "Merck Manual of Medical Information: Home Edition."

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