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The Mystery of the Purple Finger: What Could Have Caused It?

By HERWriter
 
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purple finger mystery: what caused it? Dmitry Shabanov/PhotoSpin

I looked at my middle finger and was surprised to see the intensity of the purple color of my skin. I tried to think, what could have caused this purple episode to occur in a single finger? Was it serious?

The previous night I had a sudden pain, like an insect had stung me, on the back of my middle finger. I could not see any bite but went ahead and iced it a couple times before bed.

The next day I forgot about my finger, until I noticed it while washing my hands. The skin of my middle finger was incredibly purple like it was bruised or had been dipped in grape jelly.

The odd thing was, only the backside of my middle finger from one knuckle down from the tip to the base was purple. The inside skin of the finger looked normal. The finger did not appear swollen and barely was painful when I squeezed it. I did not have any other symptoms of feeling poorly.

Like many of you would do in this situation, I searched the web. Interestingly, I found numerous forum postings from people who described similar situations that had happened to them. Like me, some of them also had their middle finger affected.

After much hunting, I found a few medical articles that described what it could be and found a photo of someone else’s hand that looked surprisingly like mine. (1)

The diagnosis was a paroxysmal finger hematoma or Achenbach syndrome. Even though it is supposed to be uncommon, based on the numbers of people who posted about similar episodes, it may happen more often than the medical community thinks.

Achenbach syndrome is a benign self-limiting condition of sudden unexplained bruising of the hand or fingers. It is more common in women then men and the middle and index fingers are most affected.

Typically the palm side of the finger shows the bruising after a sudden episode of pain or itching, and there maybe swelling and coldness of the area. The fingertip is usually not involved. The bruising resolves in a few days, which mine did.

While I was able to determine what my purple finger was probably caused by, there are several more serious problems that can cause purple fingers or toes.

Purple digits can be caused a range of problems such as trauma to the finger, a snake bites, a blood clot in the finger due to high levels of cholesterol, or from a cardiac issue. Sensitivity to cold may be due to Raynaud’s disease, frostbite, certain types of anemia or an early sign of lupus.

It is important to consider any issues in your medical history or medications you are taking that might cause a purple finger or toe to occur. Do not be afraid to call or see your doctor.

Sources:

1) Photo of hand with Achenbach syndrome. Brown, Patrick et al. The Purple Digit: An Algorithmic Approach to Diagnosis. Am J Clin Dermatol. 2010;11(2):103-116. Medscape.com. Retrieved July 28, 2014.
http://img.medscape.com/article/724/274/724274-fig5.jpg

2) Y. Smulders. What about this finger? Department of Internal and Cardiovascular Medicine, VU University Medical Center, Amsterdam, the Netherlands, tel.: +31 (0)20-4444309, fax: +31(0)20-4444313, e-mail: ]]>[email protected]]]>.
http://www.njmonline.nl/getpdf.php?t=a&id=10001012

3) Brown, Patrick et al. The Purple Digit: An Algorithmic Approach to Diagnosis. Am J Clin Dermatol. 2010;11(2):103-116. Medscape.com. Retrieved July 28, 2014.
http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/724274_5

4) Kämpfen, S. et al. A Painful Blue Thumb: A Case of Achenbach's Syndrome. Hand Surgery Unit, Department of Reconstructive Surgery, University Hospital, Geneva, Switzerland. Accepted 5 July 2005, Available online 15 September 2005. DOI: 10.1016/j.ejvsextra.2005.07.004.
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S153331670500083X

Michele is an R.N. freelance writer with a special interest in woman’s healthcare and quality of care issues. Other articles by Michele are at http://contributor.yahoo.com/user/499625/michele_blacksberg.html

Edited by Jody Smith

Add a Comment27 Comments

EmpowHER Guest
Anonymous

This article could have been written by me this morning. After getting dressed I noticed the back of my middle finger was purple! My timing was spectacular, as I was getting ready to leave for my appointment with a hand doctor! I was addressing my issue with arthritis in my left thumb joint, but when showing her my left middle finger, she was puzzled. No pain, no bite, no swelling...just purple from the first knuckle down to the base on the backside only. She chalked it up to a broken capillary. It's 12 hours later and still as purple as this morning. This kind of thing has happened to my middle finger and my ring finger on the palm side occasionly, but only at one joint and dissipates within a day. With that there is a pinch of pain, then itching. I don't take meds and my fingers are usually warm. At least I don't feel alone in this. Thank you for the article and all your comments. If anyone ever figures it out, I'd love to know.

July 14, 2015 - 7:10pm
EmpowHER Guest
Anonymous

This happened to me today and could not find a bite.

We just left a get together with family and I began to itch my middle finger on the side, noticed that the palm side of the middle finger was on the blue-purple side from the middle knuckle to the base, my finger began to swell. My husband was driving so he could not see what was happening as the events with the finger unfolded. Anyway, I sat rubbing the finger as we drove home and there was some numbness involved with this.

At this time the finger from the knuckle to the base is black and blue but sure this will go away with time.

It seems a blood vessell may have burst inside, it felt like a bite, there was a bit of pain. I will live@

June 7, 2015 - 9:39pm
EmpowHER Guest
Anonymous

Have finally discovered this blog after googling about sudden bruising in my finger, sometimes also in my thumb. This has happened to me over the last 7 years off and on and hasn't happened for at least over 12 months. Once I went to the doc about it and she seemed to be convinced I had been bitten by something even tho I told her I had done nothing to bring it on. Gave up after that but it happened again recently and my neice said Google it so I was so pleased to finally find out what it was. However I would like to know what causes it? So far I haven't been able to find anything from the diagnosis stuff on the internet that says what causes it? Appreciate more info.

June 3, 2015 - 5:50am
EmpowHER Guest
Anonymous

Happened last night while making dinner, felt an itch on the inside of my pinky joint, went to scratch it, not looking and it pinched, so looked down and there was a blue dot that proceeded to expand like a leaky blood vessel. Didn't get too large, about the size of a nickel, sorta hurt briefly. Didn't dwell on it to much and today (the next day) it's already fading. The doctor would be the last place I would look for an answer. Frequently, I can research to find out if I need to pursue it. The doctor is my last resort. They will surely send you for this, that and the other test (liability and all that). Frequently, They don't want to be bothered by anything they don't know about or don't have a drug to prescribe for. I do have Raynaud's Syndrome. I have fair, thin skin with spider veins here and there. Blood pressure is normotensive. White coat hypertension. Let's see, what else, osteoporosis, working on that with exercise, nutrition and supplements NO BISPHOSPHONATES ever! Otherwise, healthy today anyway. Too busy living life to dwell on this and after reading all the blogs, it affects all kinds of people, with all kinds of ailments. I did read that doctors are warned not to jump to diagnose and prescribe for this. Now my guess is, if you can deal with it and it is not happening frequently with negative outcomes you are good for another day

May 6, 2015 - 12:08pm
EmpowHER Guest
Anonymous

I had a stinging pain in my ring finger it got hot and swollen a bit by the end of the day it had a bruise. I don't recall any trauma to it.

March 17, 2015 - 5:09am
EmpowHER Guest
Anonymous

So glad I found this posting ! Today is my third round with this mysterious malady - the first was in 2011, the second in 2012 and now another. The first time I freaked out ( and I'm an OR RN so not much freaks me out!) Went to the ER and was hospitalized for 3 days and on Coumadin for 3 months. 5 specialists were consulted and over 35 tubes of blood later no one had a clue what was going on. It resolved the third day while on a Heparin drip. The second time it happened I did nothing and it resolved over several hours. This time I only feel annoyed. Hopefully this is truly a benign, transient condition.

March 15, 2015 - 5:56pm
HERWriter (reply to Anonymous)

So glad this was of help to you.  I'm a nurse too so was pretty concerned until I did my research.  I have not had another episode.  I hope yours does not reoccur again.

take care,

Michele 

March 16, 2015 - 4:41am
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We value and respect our HERWriters' experiences, but everyone is different. Many of our writers are speaking from personal experience, and what's worked for them may not work for you. Their articles are not a substitute for medical advice, although we hope you can gain knowledge from their insight.