10. The Hand

The human hand is one of the most important interfaces of a person’s body with the outside world. It allows us to touch, feel, manipulate, and modify our environment. Its cortical representation in the brain is nearly as large as the rest of the musculoskeletal system combined. Loss of hand function can have devastating effects on a person’s ability to work or perform activities of daily living. Unfortunately, because of its constant use and its position at the forefront of human activity, it is frequently affected by trauma and other disease processes. Nearly all physicians will see patients with hand problems, so some familiarity with these processes and the basic hand evaluation is very important.