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The Vater-Pacinian Corpuscle in the Skin of the Human Finger Tip

1956; American Medical Association; Volume: 73; Issue: 2 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1001/archderm.1956.01550020016003

1538-3652

R.K. Winkelmann,

Congenital limb and hand anomalies

The diagram of the Vater-Pacinian corpuscle reproduced in many textbooks has given the impression that this body is a simple, oval mass consisting of concentric lamellae within which a nerve passes directly from pole to pole and ends in a knob-shaped termination. The classic features of the endorgan, as pictured by Ramon-Cajal, are shown in Figure 1. This view has been universally accepted, and nowhere in the literature of the past 50 years is there evidence that this representation is not totally accurate. During recent work by one of us (Winkelmann 1 ) it became apparent that the corpuscle in the prepuce of the newborn human was complex, the commonest form being coiled or arcuate. On the basis of these observations, it was decided to evaluate the form of the Vater-Pacinian corpuscle in a characteristic location and reinterpret the classic diagram of this body. REVIEW OF