Nail clubbing may signal lung, heart & stomach diseases!

Nail clubbing is found in 29% of lung cancer patients! Nail clubbing has been known since the early days of the Greek philosopher Hippocrates, who recognized nail clubbing as a classic sign of disease. Today nail clubbing (a.k.a. ‘fingernail clubbing’ or the ‘Hippocratic fingernail’) is associated various lung diseases, especially lung cancer with non–small cell lung carcinoma. Nail clubbing is also linked with heart problems and gastrointestinal problems – but these are less common than lung problems. Statistics on nail clubbing & lung cancer: “Nail clubbing has been reported in 29% of patients with lung cancer and is observed more commonly in patients with non–small cell lung carcinoma (35%) than in patients with small cell lung carcinoma (4%).” How to recognize ‘clubbing fingernails’? Clubbing is usually a painless but complex fingernail disorder which often goes unnoticed of it’s presence in the hands of patients! In individuals without clubbing, if two opposing fingers are placed together, a diamond-shaped window will appear. In clubbing, this window is obliterated and the distal angle formed by the two nails becomes wider. This is known as the Schamroth sign window test. SUGGESTION FOR FURTHER READING: • The clubbing nail: developments, treatment & prevention! • Hands on lung cancer: the clubbing fingernail! • Fingernail disorders & medical hand analysis! • What are the most common nail disorders? • Megan Fox has a ‘clubbed thumb’ – not to be confused with ‘fingernail clubbing’!