Glomus Tumor of Thumb Occurring at Unusual Location
A 45-year-old female patient presented with a 10-year history of progressively intense pain, cold sensitivity, and severe tenderness to palpation of the lateral side of the volar aspect of her right thumb. She had diffuse swelling of right thumb present. No history of any previous trauma. We performed Love's pin test, Hildreth's test, and a cold sensitivity test. The point tenderness was localized on her right thumb, which was determined by pressing the head of a pin against the tender lesion. Tenderness disappeared after tourniquet at base of thumb for 20 min. The pain increased when her digit was exposed to cold.\nPlain X-ray of hand was normal []. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) was suggestive of swelling arising from insertion of flexure pollicis longus tendon, dark on T1 and bright MRI appearance on T2-weighted image [Figures and ]. They gave differential diagnosis of synovial swelling and glomus tumour.\nAt surgery, a red 3-mm diameter tumor was exposed through a lateral [L-shaped] volar incision of the pulp of the distal phalanx of the right thumb. It was entirely in the pulp space with no extension into subungual area []. It was removed completely [].\nHistopathological examination confirmed a glomus tumor with vascular areas with multiple glomus bodies. Surgical wound healed by primary intention []. Patient's symptoms were relieved immediately after the surgery. The patient was asymptomatic 1 year after the surgery.