Ainhum eMedicine

Description: Ainhum is the autoamputation of a digit, usually of the fifth toe bilaterally and as a result of a constricting scar in the form of a band or groove. Pseudoainhum is a similar condition that occurs as a secondary event resulting from certain hereditary and nonhereditary diseases that lead to annular constriction of digits. Ainhum predominantly affects black patients in tropical regions. Although it has been reported in temperate areas, ainhum appears to be increasingly less common in the United States.