Doctor, Doctor...
By Dave Hall
For all you hypochondriacs out there, Dave Hall continues his regular look at a some of the more unusual medical conditions, as well as some you thought you knew all about.
This week: POLYDACTYLY.
| Condition – A situation where the patient has more than his or her allotted five digits. This strange condition affects about 2 in every 1000 children and there were about 1,200 hospital appointments for it in England alone during 2005-06. |
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Contagion – You’re unlikely to contract this unless you have a history of it in the family or you have a one-off genetic mutation.
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| Danger of death – You might look like a freak and be labelled as a freak, but you won’t be anywhere near death’s door. | |
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Cure? – If you can't live with the extra one, then surgery can remove the finger (or toe) and leave you with a nice round number of five pinkies.
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Likelihood of getting time off work – Fat chance. You’re more likely to be given extra shifts to get some outstanding typing finished off - with six fingers you should be aiming for at least 100 words per minute.
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| Brag-ability – Well, you’re amongst celebrated friends when it comes sufferers – famous polydactists include Henry VIII's beheaded ex-wife Anne Boleyn and legendary cricketer Sir Garfield Sobers. |
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Overall ridiculousness – Whether it’s a useful thing to have an extra digit or not will always be debated, but at least you’ll be able to count to 12 on two hands – we think that’s cool! |
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More conditions to come soon:
Fatal insomnia, gloves and socks syndrome and more.
Find more curious conditions in Doctor Doctor. If you can't wait for the next Doctor Doctor, then why not find a phunny phobia to keep you going?
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