Oct 08, 2023 12:00:00

Signs of various diseases such as liver cirrhosis and thyroid disease appear on people's hands.

People use their hands casually in their daily lives, but since the time of the ancient Greek physician

Hippocrates , it has been known that hands can show signs of various diseases. Adam Taylor , a professor of anatomy at Lancaster University in the UK, explained about the health problems that can be seen from the hands.

What your hands say about your health
https://theconversation.com/what-your-hands-say-about-your-health-209704

◆Nails
`` Crunchy finger '' refers to a condition where the tip of the finger becomes wider and the base of the nail becomes raised, making the nail look like a drumstick. Clubbing can be seen in patients with lung cancer, interstitial pneumonia , cyanotic heart disease, liver cirrhosis, ulcerative colitis , Crohn's disease , hyperparathyroidism, etc. Hippocrates wrote about clubbing in the B.C. have been reported to be associated with lung disease.

There are many other diseases that can be detected by the condition of the nails. For example, half -and-half nails (Lindsay's nails), where half of the nails are white and the other half are reddish-brown, are a characteristic seen in about 50% of patients with chronic kidney disease. is. In addition, Terry's nail , in which the nail turns white like opaque frosted glass, is associated with liver cirrhosis, type 2 diabetes, and HIV.

In addition, Muehrcke's nails, which are white lines running horizontally on the nail, are a sign of a lack of albumin , a protein that makes up the most amount of blood. Murke lines caused by albumin deficiency can be an indicator of metabolic stress, protein deficiency, and kidney disease, Taylor said.

◆Palm
Your palms sweat when you're nervous or exercise, but if your hands sweat a lot even though you can't think of a particular reason for sweating, there may be some kind of error in your nerve signals. In some cases, this is benign

primary hyperhidrosis with no particular cause, but in some cases, it may be a sign of a problem with thyroid function.

For example, hyperthyroidism is a disease in which thyroid hormones such as thyroxine are secreted in excess, which can cause excessive metabolism and sweaty palms, Taylor said.

More serious palm abnormalities include Osler's nodules and Janeway lesions , which appear as red or purple spots on the palms and fingers. Osler's nodules are painful lumps measuring 1 mm to 10 mm that appear for several hours to several days, while Janeway lesions are painless red spots that last for several days to several weeks. These are characteristic signs of infective endocarditis , which occurs when bacteria infect the valves and walls of the heart, and can lead to death if proper treatment is not performed.

◆Pain
If you experience needle-like pain or numbness in your hand, it may be due to

carpal tunnel syndrome , which is caused by compression of the median nerve that runs from the wrist to the palm of the hand. The best treatment is to rest without using your hands, and splinting is also effective.

In addition, the rise in blood sugar levels associated with diabetes may cause numbness and pain in the hands and other extremities, a condition called diabetic neuropathy .

◆Finger length
Finger length itself does not indicate a sign of disease, but it is an indicator of what kind of diseases a person is susceptible to later in life.

In general, the length of the index finger and ring finger are about the same for women, but for men, the index finger tends to be longer than the ring finger. This is thought to be an effect of hormones to which they are exposed in the womb , and a longer ring finger is associated with better performance in sports, while in women the length of the ring finger is associated with osteoarthritis of the hip or knee. It is also associated with the risk of

Although you can't change the length of your fingers after birth, you can reduce your risk of osteoarthritis by maintaining a healthy weight, exercising regularly, and controlling your blood sugar levels. Taylor said.