Elsevier

The Lancet

Volume 334, Issue 8655, 15 July 1989, Page 155
The Lancet

Letters to the Editor
"FINGERTIP UNIT" IN DERMATOLOGY

https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(89)90204-3Get rights and content

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Cited by (33)

  • Optimizing topical management of atopic dermatitis: Is it time for advancement to a systemic medication?

    2022, Annals of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology
    Citation Excerpt :

    The National Eczema Association website (www.nationaleczema.org) provides tips toward proper use, including the use of “fingertip units (FTU)” for different body sites on the basis of age. For example, 1 FTU (approximately 0.4 g for adult women and 0.5g for adult men, defined as the amount of ointment or cream squeezed from a tube from the tip of an adult index finger to the first finger crease) suffices for the face and neck of a 4-month-old, but 2.5 FTUs would be necessary to cover the same area in an affected patient aged 10 years or older.31 Prescribing an insufficient amount will also compromise treatment results.

  • Development and validation of the fingertip unit for assessing Facial Vitiligo Area Scoring Index

    2022, Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology
    Citation Excerpt :

    It is of less utility when evaluating skin lesions smaller than the size of the palm, however, especially in the case of vitiligo. The fingertip unit (FTU) in dermatology has been conventionally used as a tool to explain an appropriate amount of topical medication to be applied to prevent the patients from using excessive amount of topical steroid.12 In this study, we devised the FTU, conceptualized as the area between the joints of the phalanges, as a measurement unit to assess the extent of facial vitiligo more precisely.

  • Potential of biocompatible polymeric ultra-thin films, nanosheets, as topical and transdermal drug delivery devices

    2019, International Journal of Pharmaceutics
    Citation Excerpt :

    When the nanosheet without BV was used as a controlled-release membrane, the nanosheet was first applied to a silicon membrane and nanosheet formulation was piled on it. A fingertip unit (1.90 µg/cm2) of commercial ointment was applied onto a silicone membrane that had previously set in a diffusion cell (Finlay et al., 1989). Immediately after applying the formulation, 6.0 mL of 40% (v/v) ethanol-water solution was added to the receiver chamber to initiate the BV-release experiment.

  • Common dermatologic conditions

    2014, Medical Clinics of North America
    Citation Excerpt :

    The concept of the fingertip unit (FTU) of topical medication (a single line of cream or ointment from a standard tube that extends along the distal phalanx of the patient’s index finger) can be useful in advising how much to apply. A single FTU is enough for one hand, 2 FTU enough for a foot, 3 FTU for an arm, and 6 FTU for a leg.83,84 Corticosteroids are among the most commonly prescribed class of topical medications.

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