Index Finger Length Can Predict Penis Size: Study

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - On the heels of a previous report that debunked the notion that a man's shoe size could be used to estimate the length of his penis, a new study now claims that those with inquiring minds need merely take a gander at a man's forefinger.

According to Greek scientists, the length of a man's index finger can accurately predict the length of his penis. The findings are published in the September issue of the journal Urology.

Dr. Evangelos Spyropoulos and colleagues from the Naval and Veterans Hospital of Athens, Greece say they conducted their investigation to gather more information on the relationship between body measurements and male genitalia size. They argue that such information--as well as a clearer definition of "normal penile size"--will help doctors counsel and treat the many men who are concerned about perceived inadequacies relating to their genitals.

The "lack of standardized metric data and the absence of widely acceptable criteria on the proper size of the external genitalia poses major difficulties in the counseling and/or treatment of young adult men with worries of sexual inadequacy," the authors write.

In their study, Spyropoulos and colleagues measured penile length and testicular volume in 52 healthy young males between the ages of 19 and 38 and compared them with other body measurements including height, weight, body mass index, index finger length and waist/hip ratio.

In lieu of measuring a man's erect penis, the team measured the flaccid, gently stretched penis, which they note is statistically correlated to erect penis length.

"Age and (body measurements) were not associated with the size of the genitalia, excluding the index finger length, which correlated significantly with the dimensions of the flaccid, maximally stretched, penis," the report indicates.

"We realize that the study population was relatively inadequate and suggest that a greater scale study with a significantly larger number of subjects is needed to confirm the observations, particularly the demonstrated trend of penile length with index finger length," Spyropoulos and colleagues conclude.