Understanding Clubbing and Clubfoot: Causes, Symptoms & Differences

"Clubbing" and "clubfoot" are two unrelated conditions involving deformities of the hands, feet, fingers and toes. The two have different features and causes, according to the Merck Manual.

Clubbing

• Clubbing refers to an enlargement of the tips of the fingers or toes and a loss of the angle where the nails emerge.

Clubfoot

• Clubfoot is a congenital deformity in which the foot is twisted out of shape or position. In older children, clubfoot may be caused by injury.

Statistics

• In adults, 75 percent to 85 percent of clubbing is due to pulmonary disease and the resultant hypoxia, according to the "Encyclopedia and Dictionary of Medicine, Nursing, and Allied Health."

Linked Disorders

• Clubbing is sometimes the result of heart disease or disorders of the liver or gastrointestinal tract. Clubbing may also be an early stage of hypertrophic osteoarthritis.

Considerations

• Clubfoot is sometimes the result of the foot being twisted due to the fetus' position in the uterus; however, this is not true clubfoot, according to the "Merck Manual of Medical Information: Home Edition."