Collagen organisation in the fibrous joint capsules in the digits of the human hand

Fiona Saunders; Ronald George Coutts; Richard Malcolm Aspden; Flora Groening

doi:10.1111/joa.70023

Collagen organisation in the fibrous joint capsules in the digits of the human hand

Fiona Saunders^* (Corresponding Author)
, Ronald George Coutts
, Richard Malcolm Aspden
, Flora Groening

^*Corresponding author for this work

MSB Medical School Berlin

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

Abstract

Normal function of the hand and, in particular, the finger joints is fundamental to the activities of daily life. Deterioration of hand and finger function can be detrimental and lead to poor quality of life. There are multiple causes of hand and finger dysfunction that can lead to pain and disability. In this review, we will consider the role of collagen and its organization within the finger joint capsules and adjacent entheses, particularly in the proximal interphalangeal joints, and aim to address three questions: (1) What are the main collagen orientations in the interphalangeal joint capsules of the human hand? (2) Is there a relationship between collagen orientation and joint function? (3) How could altering the orientation of collagen fibers affect the functional performance of the joint following injury or surgical intervention? To answer these questions, we will consider the evidence for the main collagen orientations in the finger joint capsules and entheses and investigate the relationships between structure and function. We will then consider how collagen organization is disrupted following injury and what may be potential modulators. This will provide a better understanding of how common surgical interventions affect collagen orientation in the joint capsules and highlight some implications for post-surgical outcomes.

Original language	English
Number of pages	12
Journal	Journal of Anatomy
Early online date	16 Jul 2025
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1111/joa.70023
Publication status	E-pub ahead of print - 16 Jul 2025

Bibliographical note

Open Access via the Wiley agreement

We are grateful for the generosity of the people of the North-East of Scotland who donated their bodies to the University of Aberdeen for anatomical study. We also thank the Anatomy staff at the University of Aberdeen for their support and the Licensed Teachers of Anatomy for their permission to use the histological sections for Figure 1. Histology and microscopy for this figure were performed in the Microscopy and Histology Core Facility at the University of Aberdeen.

Data Availability Statement

Data sharing is not applicable to this article as no new data were created or analyzed in this study.

Funding

This work was part of a project funded by TENOVUS Scotland (grant number: G16-07).

Funders	Funder number
Tenovus Scotland	G16-07

UN SDGs

This output contributes to the following UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

SDG 3 Good Health and Well-being

Keywords

arthritis
collagen organisation
enthesis
fibrous joint capsule
hand anatomy

Access to Document

10.1111/joa.70023Licence: CC BY

Saunders_etal_JOA_Collagen_Organisation_In_VoR
This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
Final published version, 992 KBLicence: CC BY

Microscopy and Histology
Wilkinson, D. (Manager) & Milne, G. (Manager)
Medical Sciences
Research Facilities: Facility

Cite this

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title = "Collagen organisation in the fibrous joint capsules in the digits of the human hand",

abstract = "Normal function of the hand and, in particular, the finger joints is fundamental to the activities of daily life. Deterioration of hand and finger function can be detrimental and lead to poor quality of life. There are multiple causes of hand and finger dysfunction that can lead to pain and disability. In this review, we will consider the role of collagen and its organization within the finger joint capsules and adjacent entheses, particularly in the proximal interphalangeal joints, and aim to address three questions: (1) What are the main collagen orientations in the interphalangeal joint capsules of the human hand? (2) Is there a relationship between collagen orientation and joint function? (3) How could altering the orientation of collagen fibers affect the functional performance of the joint following injury or surgical intervention? To answer these questions, we will consider the evidence for the main collagen orientations in the finger joint capsules and entheses and investigate the relationships between structure and function. We will then consider how collagen organization is disrupted following injury and what may be potential modulators. This will provide a better understanding of how common surgical interventions affect collagen orientation in the joint capsules and highlight some implications for post-surgical outcomes.",

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author = "Fiona Saunders and Coutts, \{Ronald George\} and Aspden, \{Richard Malcolm\} and Flora Groening",

note = "Open Access via the Wiley agreement We are grateful for the generosity of the people of the North-East of Scotland who donated their bodies to the University of Aberdeen for anatomical study. We also thank the Anatomy staff at the University of Aberdeen for their support and the Licensed Teachers of Anatomy for their permission to use the histological sections for Figure 1. Histology and microscopy for this figure were performed in the Microscopy and Histology Core Facility at the University of Aberdeen.",

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N1 - Open Access via the Wiley agreement We are grateful for the generosity of the people of the North-East of Scotland who donated their bodies to the University of Aberdeen for anatomical study. We also thank the Anatomy staff at the University of Aberdeen for their support and the Licensed Teachers of Anatomy for their permission to use the histological sections for Figure 1. Histology and microscopy for this figure were performed in the Microscopy and Histology Core Facility at the University of Aberdeen.

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Y1 - 2025/7/16

N2 - Normal function of the hand and, in particular, the finger joints is fundamental to the activities of daily life. Deterioration of hand and finger function can be detrimental and lead to poor quality of life. There are multiple causes of hand and finger dysfunction that can lead to pain and disability. In this review, we will consider the role of collagen and its organization within the finger joint capsules and adjacent entheses, particularly in the proximal interphalangeal joints, and aim to address three questions: (1) What are the main collagen orientations in the interphalangeal joint capsules of the human hand? (2) Is there a relationship between collagen orientation and joint function? (3) How could altering the orientation of collagen fibers affect the functional performance of the joint following injury or surgical intervention? To answer these questions, we will consider the evidence for the main collagen orientations in the finger joint capsules and entheses and investigate the relationships between structure and function. We will then consider how collagen organization is disrupted following injury and what may be potential modulators. This will provide a better understanding of how common surgical interventions affect collagen orientation in the joint capsules and highlight some implications for post-surgical outcomes.

AB - Normal function of the hand and, in particular, the finger joints is fundamental to the activities of daily life. Deterioration of hand and finger function can be detrimental and lead to poor quality of life. There are multiple causes of hand and finger dysfunction that can lead to pain and disability. In this review, we will consider the role of collagen and its organization within the finger joint capsules and adjacent entheses, particularly in the proximal interphalangeal joints, and aim to address three questions: (1) What are the main collagen orientations in the interphalangeal joint capsules of the human hand? (2) Is there a relationship between collagen orientation and joint function? (3) How could altering the orientation of collagen fibers affect the functional performance of the joint following injury or surgical intervention? To answer these questions, we will consider the evidence for the main collagen orientations in the finger joint capsules and entheses and investigate the relationships between structure and function. We will then consider how collagen organization is disrupted following injury and what may be potential modulators. This will provide a better understanding of how common surgical interventions affect collagen orientation in the joint capsules and highlight some implications for post-surgical outcomes.

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KW - collagen organisation

KW - enthesis

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U2 - 10.1111/joa.70023

DO - 10.1111/joa.70023

M3 - Article

C2 - 40667940

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ER -

Collagen organisation in the fibrous joint capsules in the digits of the human hand

Abstract

Bibliographical note

Data Availability Statement

Funding

UN SDGs

Keywords

Access to Document

Fingerprint

Equipment

Microscopy and Histology

Cite this