Magnetic resonance imaging of glomus tumour in the hand

Glomus tumours of the hand are benign tumours that arise from the neuromyoarterial apparatus. The most common site for a glomus tumour is in the distal phalanx. They frequently display a classic triad of symptoms-pain, tenderness and temperature sensitivity. Ten treated cases examined with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) preoperatively are described. All were female with a mean age of 43 years. All except 2 suffered the classic triad of symptoms. The mean duration from onset of symptoms to therapeutic intervention was 7.4 years. MRI depicted the tumours in excellent detail and aided diagnosis in the 4 patients without subungual blue discolouration. The lesions showed a low signal on the T1-weighted image and a high signal on the T2-weighted image. All except 3 were located in the subungual region. All patients underwent surgical excision with pathological confirmation. The postoperative course was smooth and there were no sequelae. High resolution MRI, providing a clear contrast between tumorous and normal tissues, has proved to be a useful non-invasive method for imaging glomus tumours in the hand.