Tendons connect muscles in the forearm to structures within the hand and fingers. Tendons allow the contractile force of forearm muscles to be used for movement in the wrist, hand, and fingers. Injuries to tendons may severely affect hand function due to disruption of the muscle-tendon unit(s).

Injuries to tendons may occur from cuts, crush injuries, sprains, or in rare cases, without apparent injury. Once severed, it is unlikely that a tendon can heal without surgical repair. Partially cut tendons may or may not require repair, depending on the extent of the damage. Restoration of hand function after injury to tendons requires surgery, aftercare, and supervised hand rehabilitation in order to obtain the best results.

Hand injuries severe enough to cut tendons may damage other vital structures within the forearm, hand, and fingers such as blood vessels, nerves, bones, and soft tissues important to normal hand function. These structures may require repair in addition to the tendon(s). Damage to these structures may be only discovered at the time of surgery.