Distal phalanx of little finger at a glance
- What it is
- The smallest, end bone of the little finger (fifth digit), supporting the fingertip and nail.
- Location
- Articulates with the middle phalanx at the distal interphalangeal joint.
- Function
- Supports the fingertip pulp and nail bed; flexor digitorum profundus inserts on its base to flex the fingertip.
- Body system
- Skeletal · paired (left and right)
- FMA ID
- FMA23959 (Foundational Model of Anatomy)
Key facts
- Its flared tip is the ungual tuberosity, supporting the nail bed.
- Its skin is supplied by the ulnar nerve, which makes the little fingertip a standard place to test ulnar sensation.
Clinical relevance
Avulsion of the extensor tendon (mallet finger) or the flexor digitorum profundus tendon (jersey finger) occurs at this bone.
Structures next to the distal phalanx of little finger
The nearest named structures in the 3D model, measured from the centre of each part:
- Middle phalanx of little finger · skeletal
- Middle phalanx of ring finger · skeletal
- Distal phalanx of ring finger · skeletal
- Proximal phalanx of ring finger · skeletal
- Proximal phalanx of little finger · skeletal
- Middle phalanx of middle finger · skeletal
- Proximal phalanx of middle finger · skeletal
- Distal phalanx of middle finger · skeletal
- Lumbricals of hand · muscular
- Proximal phalanx of index finger · skeletal
References
- Foundational Model of Anatomy: Distal phalanx of little finger (FMA23959). EMBL-EBI Ontology Lookup Service.
- OpenStax. Anatomy and Physiology 2e, §7.1 Divisions of the Skeletal System. Rice University, 2022.
- Mitsuhashi N. et al. (2009). BodyParts3D: 3D structure database for anatomical concepts. Nucleic Acids Research 37, D782–D785. Data © The Database Center for Life Science, CC BY 4.0.
Related anatomy
Explore the whole body in the interactive 3D human anatomy model, or browse the A–Z list of human structures.