eMedicine Specialties > Dermatology > Diseases of the Dermis

Ainhum: Follow-up

Author: Samuel Selden, MD, Assistant Professor, Department of Dermatology, Eastern Virginia Medical School
Contributor Information and Disclosures

Updated: Mar 13, 2009

Follow-up

Complications

  • Secondary infections may complicate ainhum.
  • If more than just the 2 fifth toes are affected in ainhum or pseudoainhum, the individual's balance may be affected when walking.
  • Dermatophytosis complex may be a complication.

Prognosis

  • Outcome is related to the stage in ainhum when the disease is diagnosed.

Patient Education

  • Instructions in good foot care are critical. Since some cases of ainhum and pseudoainhum are familial, other family members may require examination.

Miscellaneous

Medicolegal Pitfalls

  • Constricting, fissuring, and loss of digits can be mimicked by other diseases of the feet, and ainhum can remain unrecognized.
  • Ainhum may be difficult to diagnose in the United States because it is uncommon, and only 30 cases have been reported since 1960.
 


More on Ainhum

Overview: Ainhum
Differential Diagnoses & Workup: Ainhum
Treatment & Medication: Ainhum
Follow-up: Ainhum
Multimedia: Ainhum
References
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References

  1. Greene JT, Fincher RM. Case report: ainhum (spontaneous dactylolysis) in a 65-year-old American black man. Am J Med Sci. Feb 1992;303(2):118-20. [Medline].

  2. Mendelson DS, Chan KF, Song IS. Spontaneous dactylolysis with pain in a 58-year-old American Black man. JAMA. Oct 2 1981;246(14):1591-2. [Medline].

  3. da Silva Lima JF. On ainhum. Arch Dermatol. 1880;6:367.

  4. Olivieri I, Piccirillo A, Scarano E, Ricciuti F, Padula A, Molfese V. Dactylolysis spontanea or ainhum involving the big toe. J Rheumatol. Dec 2005;32(12):2437-9. [Medline].

  5. Cole GJ. Ainhum: An account of fifty-four patients with special reference to etiology and treatment. J Bone Joint Surg Br. Feb 1965;47:43-51. [Medline].

  6. Wells TL, Robinson RC. Annular constrictions of the digits. AMA Arch Derm Syphilol. Nov 1952;66(5):569-72. [Medline].

  7. Cunliffe WJ. Ainhum and pseudo-ainhum. In: Rook A, Wilkinson DS, Ebling FJ. Textbook of Dermatology. Vol 2. Oxford: Blackwell Scientific; 1979:1638.

  8. Demis DJ. Ainhum, pseudoainhum, and tourniquet syndrome. In: Demis DJ, Dobson RL, McGuire J. Clinical Dermatology. 7th ed. Hagerstown, Md: Harper & Row; 1979:4-47.

  9. Fetterman LE, Hardy R, Lehrer H. The clinico-roentgenologic features of ainhum. Am J Roentgenol Radium Ther Nucl Med. Jul 1967;100(3):512-22. [Medline].

  10. Jemmott T, Foster AV, Edmonds ME. An unusual cause of ulceration: ainhum (dactylolysis spontanea). Int Wound J. Sep 2007;4(3):251-4. [Medline].

  11. Rossiter JW, Anderson PC. Ainhum: treatment with intralesional steroids. Int J Dermatol. Jun 1976;15(5):379-82. [Medline].

  12. Allyn B, Leider M. Dactylolysis spontanea (ainhum). Report of a case treated by the surgical procedure known as Z-plasty. JAMA. May 25 1963;184:655-7. [Medline].

  13. Browne SG. Ainhum. Int J Dermatol. Jun 1976;15(5):348-50. [Medline].

  14. Dent DM, Fataar S, Rose AG. Ainhum and angiodysplasia. Lancet. Aug 22 1981;2(8243):396-7. [Medline].

  15. Hunt M, Glucksman EE. Ainhum presenting to the accident and emergency department. Arch Emerg Med. Dec 1993;10(4):324-7. [Medline].

  16. Kean BH, Tucker HA, Miller WC. Ainhum: a clinical summary of forty-five cases on the Isthmus of Panama. Trans R Soc Trop Med Hyg. 1946;39:331-4.

  17. Ramesh V, Misra RS, Mahaur BS. Pseudoainhum in porokeratosis of Mibelli. Cutis. Feb 1992;49(2):129-30. [Medline].

  18. Schulz EJ. Genodermatoses. Dermatol Clin. Oct 1994;12(4):787-96. [Medline].

  19. Sharma RC, Sharma AK, Sharma NL. Pseudo-ainhum in discoid lupus erythematosus. J Dermatol. Apr 1998;25(4):275-6. [Medline].

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Further Reading

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Keywords

ainhum, dactylolysis spontanea, bankokerend, sukhapakla, autoamputation of a digit, pseudoainhum, pseudo-ainhum, annular constriction of a digit

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Contributor Information and Disclosures

Author

Samuel Selden, MD, Assistant Professor, Department of Dermatology, Eastern Virginia Medical School
Samuel Selden, MD is a member of the following medical societies: American Academy of Dermatology
Disclosure: Astellas Pharma US, Inc. Honoraria Consulting; Galderma Laboratories, L.P. Honoraria Review panel membership

Medical Editor

Smeena Khan, MD, Private Practice, Adult and Pediatric Dermatology Associates
Smeena Khan, MD is a member of the following medical societies: Alpha Omega Alpha and American Academy of Dermatology
Disclosure: Nothing to disclose.

Pharmacy Editor

Richard P Vinson, MD, Assistant Clinical Professor, Department of Dermatology, Texas Tech University School of Medicine; Consulting Staff, Mountain View Dermatology, PA
Richard P Vinson, MD is a member of the following medical societies: American Academy of Dermatology, Association of Military Dermatologists, Texas Dermatological Society, and Texas Medical Association
Disclosure: Nothing to disclose.

Managing Editor

Jeffrey J Miller, MD, Associate Professor of Dermatology, Penn State University College of Medicine; Staff Dermatologist, Penn State Milton S Hershey Medical Center
Jeffrey J Miller, MD is a member of the following medical societies: Alpha Omega Alpha, American Academy of Dermatology, Association of Professors of Dermatology, North American Hair Research Society, and Society for Investigative Dermatology
Disclosure: Nothing to disclose.

CME Editor

Joel M Gelfand, MD, MSCE, Medical Director, Clinical Studies Unit, Assistant Professor, Department of Dermatology, Associate Scholar, Center for Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University of Pennsylvania
Joel M Gelfand, MD, MSCE is a member of the following medical societies: Society for Investigative Dermatology
Disclosure: AMGEN Consulting fee Consulting; AMGEN Grant/research funds None; Genentech Consulting fee Consulting; Centocor Consulting fee Consulting; Centocor Grant/research funds None; Covance Consulting fee Consulting; Shire  Consulting

Chief Editor

William D James, MD, Paul R Gross Professor of Dermatology, University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine; Vice-Chair, Program Director, Department of Dermatology, University of Pennsylvania Health System
William D James, MD is a member of the following medical societies: American Academy of Dermatology and Society for Investigative Dermatology
Disclosure: elsevier Royalty Other; american college of physicians Honoraria Other

 
 
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