Britain’s King Charles’ swollen hands have been a topic of conversation for years.

While he has never addressed the reason, back in 2012 he joked about his “sausage fingers” after getting off a long haul flight to Australia.

Speculation by onlookers ramped up in 2021 when he was pictured pouring a pint during a royal engagement.

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At the time, one person took to Twitter to say: “I’ve never noticed the hands of Prince Charles until this photo. Is he okay? They are so swollen.”

Now a top doctor has given insight into the monarch’s mysterious condition, Mirror UK reports.

GP Chun Tang, Medical Director at Pall Mall Medical in Manchester, said there are many potential causes of the 74-year-old’s so-called ‘sausage fingers’.

Dr Tang told the Daily Mail: “Often puffy fingers are a symptom of water retention which can be caused by numerous health conditions.

“This condition arises due to inflammation and can be a result of arthritis, multiple bacterial infections or even TB.

“Other possibilities include high salt levels, allergic reactions, medicinal side effects, injury and autoimmune disease.”

There’s even a fancy medical term for his swollen digits – dactylitis – which is a medical term for severe swelling that affects your fingers and toes.

But despite any potential health concerns, Charles seems to take it all in stride, and even joked about his ‘sausage fingers’ that apparently run in the family.

In a letter to his friend after his son, Prince William was born, he reportedly wrote: “I can’t tell you how excited and proud I am. He really does look surprisingly appetising and has sausage fingers just like mine.”

His late mother, the Queen, also noted the size of Charles’ hands, reportedly writing a letter to her music teacher after he was born: “They are rather large, but with fine long fingers quite unlike mine and certainly unlike his father’s. It will be interesting to see what they become.”

Britain’s King has never confirmed the cause of his swollen fingers.

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