In racquet nails (also known as brachyonychia, nail en raquette, and racquet thumb), the nail plate is flattened, the end of the thumb is widened and flattened, and the distal phalanx is abnormally short.James, William; Berger, Timothy; Elston, Dirk (2005). ''Andrews' Diseases of the Skin: Clinical Dermatology''. (10th ed.). Saunders. . In racquet nails, the width of the nail bed and nail plate is greater than their length.Freedberg, et al. (2003). ''Fitzpatrick's Dermatology in General Medicine''. (6th ed.). McGraw-Hill. . The condition is painless and asymptomatic. Racquet nails usually occur on one or both thumbs, but may appear on all fingers and toes. It may be genetic, inherited as an autosomal-dominant trait, or acquired. Genetic disorders associated with racquet nail include

Larsen syndrome Larsen syndrome (LS) is a congenital disorder discovered in 1950 by Larsen and associates when they observed dislocation of the large joints and face anomalies in six of their patients.Mitra, N., Kannan, N., Kumar, V.S., Kavita, G. "Larsen Syndrome ...

Brooke–Spiegler syndrome CYLD cutaneous syndrome (CCS) is the recently designated term for three rare inherited cutaneous adnexal tumor syndromes: multiple familial trichoepithelioma (MFT1) (also termed epithelioma adenoides cysticum and epithelioma adenoides cysticum of ...

Rubinstein–Taybi syndrome Rubinstein–Taybi syndrome (RTS) is a rare genetic condition characterized by short stature, moderate to severe learning difficulties, distinctive facial features, and broad thumbs and first toes. Other features of the disorder vary among affect ...

Hajdu–Cheney syndrome Hajdu–Cheney syndrome, also called acroosteolysis with osteoporosis and changes in skull and mandible, arthrodentoosteodysplasia and Cheney syndrome, is an extremely rare autosomal dominant congenital disorder of the connective tissue characteri ...

cartilage–hair hypoplasia Cartilage–hair hypoplasia (CHH) is a rare genetic disorder. Symptoms may include short-limbed dwarfism due to skeletal dysplasia, variable level of immunodeficiency, and predisposition to cancer. It was first reported by Victor McKusick in 1965 ...

pycnodysostosis Pycnodysostosis (from Greek: πυκνός (puknos) meaning "dense", ''dys'' ("defective"), and ''ostosis'' ("condition of the bone")), is a lysosomal storage disease of the bone caused by a mutation in the gene that codes the enzyme cathepsin K. ...

acrodysostosis Acrodysostosis is a rare congenital malformation syndrome which involves shortening of the interphalangeal joints of the hands and feet, intellectual disability in approximately 90% of affected children, and peculiar facies. Other common abnor ...

, and

brachydactyly type D Brachydactyly type D, also known as short thumb or stub thumb and inaccurately referred to as clubbed thumb, is a condition clinically recognised by a thumb being relatively short and round with an accompanying wider nail bed. The distal phalanx ...

. Acquired racquet nail is associated with

acroosteolysis Acroosteolysis is resorption of the distal bony phalanges. Acroosteolysis has two patterns of resorption in adults: diffuse and bandlike. The diffuse pattern of resorption has a widely diverse differential diagnosis which includes: pyknod ...

and

psoriatic arthropathy Psoriatic arthritis is a long-term inflammatory arthritis that occurs in people affected by the autoimmune disease psoriasis. The classic feature of psoriatic arthritis is swelling of entire fingers and toes with a sausage-like appearance. Thi ...

. Acquired racquet nail may also be diagnostic of

bone resorption Bone resorption is resorption of bone tissue, that is, the process by which osteoclasts break down the tissue in bones and release the minerals, resulting in a transfer of calcium from bone tissue to the blood. The osteoclasts are multi-nucleated ...

hyperparathyroidism Hyperparathyroidism is an increase in parathyroid hormone (PTH) levels in the blood. This occurs from a disorder either within the parathyroid glands (primary hyperparathyroidism) or as response to external stimuli (secondary hyperparathyroidism). ...

. Racquet nail often presents with other nail conditions such as

onycholysis Onycholysis is a common medical condition characterized by the painless detachment of the nail from the nail bed, usually starting at the tip and/or sides. On the hands, it occurs particularly on the ring finger but can occur on any of the fingern ...

koilonychia Koilonychia, also known as spoon nails,James, William; Berger, Timothy; Elston, Dirk (2005). ''Andrews' Diseases of the Skin: Clinical Dermatology''. (10th ed.). Saunders. . is a nail disease that can be a sign of hypochromic anemia, especially ir ...

, pachyonychia,

Muehrcke's lines Muehrcke's nails or Muehrcke's lines ( apparent leukonychia striata) are changes in the fingernail that may be a sign of an underlying medical condition. The term refers to a set of one or more pale transverse bands extending all the way across th ...

, leuconychia, and half-and-half nails. Cosmetic surgery can be used to improve the appearance of the nails.

References

External links

{{Disorders of skin appendages Conditions of the skin appendages

See also

References

External links