Hitchhiker thumb deformity
Citation, DOI, disclosures and article data
At the time the article was created Aditya Shetty had no recorded disclosures.
View Aditya Shetty's current disclosuresAt the time the article was last revised Mostafa Elfeky had no financial relationships to ineligible companies to disclose.
View Mostafa Elfeky's current disclosures- Z-thumb
- Z-shaped thumb
- Duckbill thumb
- Duck-bill thumb
- Hitchhiker's thumb
- Hitchhiker's thumbs
- Hitchhiker thumbs
Hitchhiker thumb deformity is a musculoskeletal manifestation of rheumatoid arthritis presenting in the thumb, with the combination of:
- flexion of the metacarpophalangeal (MCP) joint
- hyperextension of the interphalangeal (IP) joint
Terminology
Hitchhiker thumb deformity, also known as Z-thumb or duckbill thumb, is used to both describe the appearance of the thumb on physical examination and also the corresponding radiographic appearance. It is similar to how a person would normally angulate and hold out the thumb with the intention to hitchhike. It is one of the musculoskeletal manifestations of rheumatoid arthritis in the hand although not entirely specific for this diagnosis.
The sign is also used in obstetric ultrasound and on pediatric radiographs to describe the appearance of the fingers in diastrophic dysplasia.
See also
Quiz questions
References
- 1. May DA. Musculoskeletal Imaging: The Requisites (Expert Consult- Online and Print), 4e (Requisites in Radiology). Saunders. ISBN:0323081770. Read it at Google Books - Find it at Amazon
- 2. Shiraishi M, Fukuda T, Igarashi T et-al. Differentiating Rheumatoid and Psoriatic Arthritis of the Hand: Multimodality Imaging Characteristics. (2020) RadioGraphics. 40 (5): 1339-1354. doi:10.1148/rg.2020200029 - Pubmed
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