The importance of finger clubbing in pulmonary tuberculosis.
Finger clubbing was observed in 21% of 70 adult Nigerian patients presenting with pulmonary tuberculosis. These patients had a significantly higher incidence of haemoptysis and they also showed a significantly lower body weight and serum albumin than those without clubbing. Their chest x-rays revealed larger cavities and at 2 months the mortality of the patients with finger clubbing (40%) was very much higher than of those without (5.5%). It is suggested that finger clubbing is of value in assessing patients with pulmonary tuberculosis because it helps to identify those with severe destructive disease.
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001835:Body Weight; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D010005:Osteoarthropathy, Secondary Hypertrophic / Q000209:etiology*; D011379:Prognosis; D014397:Tuberculosis, Pulmonary / Q000150:complications*