The foot (PL: feet) is an anatomical structure found in many vertebrates. It is the terminal portion of a limb which bears weight and allows locomotion. In many animals with feet, the foot is a separate organ at the terminal part of the leg made up of one or more segments or bones, generally including claws or nails. Etymology
The word "foot", in the sense of meaning the "terminal part of the leg of a vertebrate animal" comes from "Old English fot "foot," from Proto-Germanic *fot (source also of Old Frisian fot, Old Saxon fot, Old Norse fotr, Danish fod, Swedish fot, Dutch voet, Old High German fuoz, German Fuß, Gothic fotus "foot"), from PIE root *ped- "foot". The "plural form feet is an instance of i-mutation." Structure
The human foot is a strong and complex mechanical structure containing 26 bones, 33 joints (20 of which are actively articulated), and more than a hundred muscles, tendons, and ligaments. The joints of the foot are the ankle and subtalar joint and the interphalangeal joints of the foot. An anthropometric study of 1197 North American adult Caucasian males (mean age 35.5 years) found that a mans foot length was 26.3 cm with a standard deviation of 1.2 cm.The foot can be subdivided into the hindfoot, the midfoot, and the forefoot:
The hindfoot is composed of the talus (or ankle bone) and the calcaneus (or heel bone). The two long bones of the lower leg, the tibia and fibula, are connected to the top of the talus to form the ankle.
Paroxysmal hypertension is episodic and volatile high blood pressure, which may be due to stress of any sort, or from a pheochromocytoma, a type of tumor involving the adrenal medulla.Patients with paroxysmal hypertension who test negative for pheochromocytoma are said to be suffering from a clinical entity called "pseudopheochromocytoma." This disorder is due to episodic dopamine discharge and has been observed predominantly in hypertensive women whose presentation mimicked pheochromocytoma, but with subsequent testing being negative for malignancy. In patients with pseudopheochromocytoma, dopamine was found to be significantly increased post-paroxysm. The paroxysm is said to be similar to the hypertensive episodes described by Page in 1935, and has been colloquially referred to as "Pages Syndrome". These episodes can occur after diencephalic stimulation.The exact cause of pseudopheochromocytoma is unknown, though it is thought to be related to episodic dopamine discharge. External stressors that may contribute include pain, anxiety, or emotional trauma. Therefore, treatment of pseudopheochromocytoma is aimed at psychological support and intervention with antidepressants, but also treatment with alpha and then beta blockers in resistant cases. References
Further reading
Kuchel O, Buu NT, Larochelle P, Hamet P, Genest J (1986). "Episodic dopamine discharge in paroxysmal hypertension. Pages syndrome revisited". Archives of Internal Medicine. 146 (7): 1315–20. doi:10.1001/archinte.1986.00360190079011. PMID 3718127. Seck SM, Ka EF, Niang A, Diouf B (2009). "Pseudopheochromocytoma: An uncommon cause of malignant hypertension". Indian Journal of Nephrology. 19 (3): 122–4. doi:10.4103/0971-4065.57111. PMC 2859479. PMID 20436734. Mann SJ (2008). "Severe paroxysmal hypertension (pseudopheochromocytoma)". Current Hypertension Reports. 10 (1): 12–8. doi:10.1007/s11906-008-0005-2. PMID 18367021. S2CID 36584198.