| finger | 1. One of the five terminating members of the hand; a digit; especially, one of the four extermities of the hand, other than the thumb. 2. <mechanics> Anything that does work of a finger; as, the pointer of a clock, watch, or other registering machine; especially a small projecting rod, wire, or piece, which is brought into contact with an object to effect, direct, or restrain a motion. 3. The breadth of a finger, or the fourth part of the hand; a measure of nearly an inch; also, the length of finger, a measure in domestic use in the United States, of about four and a half inches or one eighth of a yard. "A piece of steel three fingers thick." (Bp. Wilkins) 4. Skill in the use of the fingers, as in playing upon a musical instrument. "She has a good finger." (Busby) Ear finger, the little finger. Finger alphabet. See Dactylology. Finger bar, the horizontal bar, carrying slotted spikes, or fingers, through which the vibratory knives of mowing and reaping machines play. Finger board, the part of a stringed instrument against which the fingers press the strings to vary the tone; the keyboard of a piano, organ, etc.; manual. Finger bowl or glass, a bowl or glass to hold water for rinsing the fingers at table. <botany> Finger flower, a sponge having finger-shaped lobes, or branches. Finger stall, a cover or shield for a finger. Finger steel, a steel instrument for whetting a currier's knife. To burn one's fingers. See Burn. To have a finger in, to be concerned in. To have at one's fingers' ends, to be thoroughly familiar with. Origin: AS. Finger; akin to D. Vinger, OS. & OHG. Fingar, G. Finger, Icel. Fingr, Sw. & Dan. Finger, Goth. Figgrs; of unknown origin; perh. Akin to E. Fang. Source: Websters Dictionary (01 Mar 1998) |
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| finger agnosia | The inability to name or recognise individual fingers, of one's own or of other persons; most often caused by lesion of or near the angular gyrus of the dominant hemisphere. (05 Mar 2000) |
| finger injuries | General or unspecified injuries involving the fingers. (12 Dec 1998) |
| finger percussion | Percussion in which a finger of one hand is used as a plessimeter and one of the other hand as a plessor. (05 Mar 2000) |
| finger phenomenon | A sign of organic hemiplegia; with the patient's elbow resting on a table, the patient's wrist is grasped by the examiner's hand, the thumb of which is used to exert pressure on the radial side of the patient's pisiform bone; if the hemiplegia is organic, some or all of the patient's fingers become extended and spread out in a fanlike form. Synonym: Gordon's sign. (05 Mar 2000) |
| finger protein | <protein> A protein which has areas with regularly spaced cysteine amino acids that appear to be involved in binding zinc atoms. A protein which has zinc fingers. (09 Oct 1997) |
| finger-nose test | A test of voluntary eye-motor coordination of the upper limb(s); the subject is asked to slowly touch the tip of his nose with his extended index finger; assesses cerebellar function. (05 Mar 2000) |
| finger-thumb reflex | Opposition and adduction of the thumb with flexion at its metacarpophalangeal joint and extension at its interphalangeal joint, when firm passive flexion of the third, fourth, or fifth finger is made; the reflex is present normally but is absent in pyramidal lesions. Synonym: finger-thumb reflex, Mayer's reflex. (05 Mar 2000) |
| finger-to-finger test | A test for coordination and position sense of the upper limbs; the subject is asked to approximate the ends of his index fingers; assesses cerebellar function. (05 Mar 2000) |
| fingered | 1. Having fingers. 2. <botany> Having leaflets like fingers; digitate. 3. Marked with figures designating which finger should be used for each note. Source: Websters Dictionary (01 Mar 1998) |
| fingerling | Young fish, usually in its first or second year and generally between 2 and 25 centimetres long. (Compare fry and parr.) (09 Oct 1997) |
| fingernail | See: nail. (05 Mar 2000) |
| fingerprint | 1. An impression of the inked bulb of the distal phalanx of a finger, showing the configuration of the surface ridges, used as a means of identification. See: dermatoglyphics, Galton's system of classification of fingerprints. 2. Term, sometimes used informally, referring to any analytical method capable of making fine distinctions between similar compounds or gel patterns; e.g., the pattern of an infrared absorption curve or of a two-dimensional paper chromatograph. 3. In genetics, the analysis of DNA fragments to determine the identity of an individual or the paternity of a child. Synonym: genetic fingerprint. (05 Mar 2000) |
| fingerprint dystrophy | A condition wherein fine parallel lines in a fingerprint configuration area are seen in the basal epithelial layer and basement membrane of the corneal epithelium. See: map-dot-fingerprint dystrophy. (05 Mar 2000) |
| fingerprinting | The basic principle of the technique is to digest a large molecule with a sequence specific hydrolase to produce moderate size fragments that can then be run on an electrophoresis gel. Provided the hydrolase only cleaves at specific sites (e.g. Between particular amino acids or bases) then the fragments should be characteristic of that molecule. The technique can be used to distinguish strains of virus or to differentiate between similar but nonidentical proteins (peptide mapping). Not to be confused with footprinting. (18 Nov 1997) |
| abductor muscle of little finger | Origin, pisiform bone and pisohamate ligament; insertion, medial side of base of proximal phalanx of the little finger; action, abducts and flexes little finger; nerve supply, ulnar. Synonym: musculus abductor digiti minimi manus, abductor muscle of little finger, musculus abductor digiti quinti. (05 Mar 2000) |
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| baseball finger | An avulsion, partial or complete, of the long finger extensor from the base of the distal phalanx. Synonym: drop finger, hammer finger, mallet finger. (05 Mar 2000) |
| blubber finger | An infection caused by erysipelothrix rhusiopathiae that is almost wholly restricted to persons who in their occupation handle infected fish, shellfish, poultry, or meat. Three forms of this condition exist: a mild localised form manifested by local swelling and redness of the skin; a diffuse form that might present with fever; and a rare systemic form associated with endocarditis. (12 Dec 1998) |
| bolster finger | Monilial infection of the nail fold. (05 Mar 2000) |
| mallet finger | An avulsion, partial or complete, of the long finger extensor from the base of the distal phalanx. Synonym: drop finger, hammer finger, mallet finger. (05 Mar 2000) |
| gloved-finger sign | In chest radiology, the appearance of mucoid impaction of branching bronchi. (05 Mar 2000) |
| ring finger | Fourth finger. Synonym: digitus annularis, fourth finger. (05 Mar 2000) |
| middle finger | Third finger. Synonym: digitus medius, digitus tertius, third finger. (05 Mar 2000) |
| hammer finger | An avulsion, partial or complete, of the long finger extensor from the base of the distal phalanx. Synonym: drop finger, hammer finger, mallet finger. (05 Mar 2000) |
| second finger | The second finger (the thumb being counted as the first). Synonym: digitus secundus, forefinger, index, second finger. (05 Mar 2000) |
| pulp of finger | The fleshy mass at the extremity of the finger. Synonym: digital pulp. (05 Mar 2000) |
| short flexor muscle of little finger | Origin, hamulus of hamate bone; insertion, medial side of proximal phalanx of little finger; action, flexes proximal phalanx of little finger; nerve supply, ulnar. Synonym: musculus flexor digiti minimi brevis manus, short flexor muscle of little finger. (05 Mar 2000) |
| snap finger | An affection in which the movement of the finger is arrested for a moment in flexion or extension and then continues with a jerk. Synonym: jerk finger, lock finger, snap finger, spring finger, stuck finger. (05 Mar 2000) |
| speck finger | An infection caused by erysipelothrix rhusiopathiae that is almost wholly restricted to persons who in their occupation handle infected fish, shellfish, poultry, or meat. Three forms of this condition exist: a mild localised form manifested by local swelling and redness of the skin; a diffuse form that might present with fever; and a rare systemic form associated with endocarditis. (12 Dec 1998) |
| spider finger | <clinical sign> A skeletal disorder where the patient has unusually long, thin bones, especially noticeable in the fingers and toes. (09 Oct 1997) |