Med Library . org

Open Source Encyclopedia

Frank's sign

Welcome to MedLibrary.org. For best results, we recommend beginning with the navigation links at the top of the page, which can guide you through our collection of over 14,000 medication labels and package inserts. For additional information on other topics which are not covered by our database of medications, just enter your topic in the search box below:

Normal Ear Anatomy
Earlobe creases seen in the Japanese angina patient

Frank's sign or Frank sign is a diagonal ear lobe crease (ELC) extending diagonally from the tragus across the lobule to the rear edge of the auricle.[1]

It has been hypothesised that Frank's sign is indicative of cardiovascular disease[2] and/or diabetes. Some studies have described Frank's sign as a marker of cardiovascular disease but not linked to the severity of the condition.[3] In contrast, other studies have rebutted any association between Frank's sign and coronary artery disease.[4]

However, researchers do agree that these creases have no predictive value in Native American Indian and Asian patients.

Some studies have focused upon bilateral ELC.[5]

The sign is named after Dr. Sanders T. Frank.[6]

Contents

Severity

  • Grade 3 - A deep crease across the whole of the earlobe
  • Grade 2a - Creased more than halfway across the earlobe
  • Grade 2b - A superficial crease across the earlobe
  • Grade 1 - A small amount of wrinkling on the earlobe

Notable Individuals with Frank's Sign

Links to images

References

  1. ^ Frank ST (August 1973). "Aural sign of coronary-artery disease". N. Engl. J. Med. 289 (6): 327–8. doi:10.1056/NEJM197308092890622. PMID 4718047.
  2. ^ Miot, H.A., Molina de Medeiros, M. etal (2006). Association between coronary artery disease and the diagonal earlobe an preauricular creases in men. Anais Brasileiros de Dermatologia. vol.81 no.1
  3. ^ Lesbre JP, Castier B, Tribouilloy C, Labeille B, Isorni C (January 1987). "[Frank's sign and coronary disease]". Ann Cardiol Angeiol (Paris) (in French) 36 (1): 37–41. PMID 3827155.
  4. ^ Davis TM, Balme M, Jackson D, Stuccio G, Bruce DG (October 2000). "The diagonal ear lobe crease (Frank's sign) is not associated with coronary artery disease or retinopathy in type 2 diabetes: the Fremantle Diabetes Study". Aust N Z J Med 30 (5): 573–7. doi:10.1111/j.1445-5994.2000.tb00858.x. PMID 11108067.
  5. ^ Evrengül H, Dursunoğlu D, Kaftan A, et al. (2004). "Bilateral diagonal earlobe crease and coronary artery disease: a significant association". Dermatology (Basel) 209 (4): 271–5. doi:10.1159/000080847. PMID 15539887.
  6. ^ Frank ST (August 1973). "Aural sign of coronary-artery disease". N. Engl. J. Med. 289 (6): 327–8. doi:10.1056/NEJM197308092890622. PMID 4718047.