Tendon transfers for failed nerve reconstruction.

There are few reconstructive procedures in the upper extremity that are as helpful to patients as a tendon transfer. Successful tendon transfer requires the marriage of anatomic knowledge, surgical judgment, and rehabilitative expertise. Frequently, the improvement in function can be dramatic. By the same token, an unsuccessful tendon transfer wastes a normal muscle-tendon unit in the hand and leaves the patient withless function than what was present preoperatively.