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VIDEO
CONTENT
QUIZ
MATERIALS
Quick Facts
Key Features
Ossification
Variations
Surface Anatomy
Clinical Correlates
Quick Facts
- Location: Hand
- Bone Type: Long bones
- Key Features: Head, body, base, tuberosity, articular facet
- Articulation: Middle phalanges of fingers
- Arterial Supply: Proper palmar digital arteries
Key Features & Anatomical Relations
- General Description: The distal phalanges are the terminal bones of each finger, including the thumb, totaling five in the hand.
- Physical Characteristics:
- Parts: Head, body, and base
- Landmarks: Tuberosity and articular facet
- Location & Articulation:
- Distal to: Middle phalanges
- Articulation: Distal interphalangeal joints (except for the thumb, which has an interphalangeal joint)
Ossification
- Ossification Centers: Body (appears in utero during the third month) and base (appears during the second to fourth years)
- Fusion: Typically completes between the fifteenth to eighteenth years
Surface Anatomy
- Palpation Points: The head, body, and base of each distal phalanx can be palpated at the fingertips.
Clinical Correlates
- Common Conditions:
- Fracture: Common in finger injuries
- Brachyphalangia: Shortening of the distal phalanges
- Symphalangia: Fusion of the phalanges
- Clinodactyly: Curved or deviated finger
