Secondary defects of the hand with intrinsic paralysis

Abstract The hand with paralysis of intrinsic muscles needs to be exercised regularly to prevent secondary defects. These secondary defects, resulting from intrinsic paralysis are discussed and for each defect a method to assess objectively the degree of the problem and to evaluate the effect of treatment is described. If not corrected, these defects may compromise normal function of the hand when either nerve function recovers or tendon transfers have been performed to correct the primary functional defects.