Pulmonary hypertrophic osteoarthropathy in cystic fibrosis.

A survey was carried out in 40 patients with cystic fibrosis to determine how many of them showed evidence of pulmonary hypertrophic osteoarthropathy (PHOA) and whether pulmonary function abnormalities, sputum cultures, or a history of joint or bone symptoms could be used to aid in its diagnosis. This survey indicates that the prevalence of PHOA is low (5%) and that these laboratory and clinical criteria do no appear to predict which patients are at risk for PHOA.