Hand and Wrist Anatomy

 

We have many precise and labelled illustrations of the hand and wrist, including details of bony, ligament and muscular anatomy. Our library includes illustrations of repairs to fractures and cartilage, illustrations of carpal tunnel syndrome and ganglion cysts.

Please see our entire selection of 
Hand & Wrist Anatomy Images

Anatomy

The hand consists of 27 bones. 19 of the bones make up the fingers that have one metacarpal and one proximal, intermediate and distal phalanx bone each, apart from the thumb, which has just a metacarpal, proximal and distal phalanx bone. In addition to these bones, the carpals form the wrist. The carpal bones include the scaphoid, lunate, pisiform, triquetrum, trapezium and trapezoid.

There are 3 nerves in the hand, the median, ulnar and radial nerves. The muscles are either intrinsic (within the hand) or extrinsic (stretching from the forearm to hand). The intrinsic muscles are responsible for fine motor movement and include the adductor pollicis, palmaris brevis, interossei, lumbrical and thenar muscles.

The wrist joint, or radiocarpal joint, mark the area of transition between the hand and forearm. The wrist joint consists of the proximal row of carpal bones (the scaphoid, lunate and triquetrum) and the distal end of the radius bone. The wrist joint is a synovial joint, meaning it joins bones with a fibrous joint capsule, allowing for movement. The fibrous outer layer attaches to the radius, ulna and proximal carpal bones.

Common conditions of the hands and wrist

Carpal tunnel syndrome, which is a painful condition when the tunnel where the median nerve and tendons pass into the hands becomes inflamed and puts pressure on the median nerve, can be caused by injury or conditions such as dislocation or fracture, arthritis, diabetes and tenosynovitis. The condition can be treated by splinting the wrist, or by steroid injections to reduce swelling around the median nerve. However, in some cases surgery is needed to cut a ligament within the tunnel, to ease pressure on the affected nerve.

Fractures in the wrist can occur in any of the ten bones that make up the wrist. However, the most common is a break in the radius. Depending on the type of fracture, and the patient, a padded splint may be used to align bones, and a cast added. Some fractures require surgery to attach pins, screws, plates or rods to fix the bones back in place while the healing is taking place.

Please see our entire selection of 
Hand & Wrist Anatomy Images