We provide high quality, cost effective health care and related services that improve the health status of people in central Iowa. The hand and arm are one of the most important structures of the human body. The upper extremity is vital to human function and appearance. Not only is it important for manipulating objects, it is also a vital sensory organ that has been ranked with the eye in terms of its function in sensory perception.
Communication is another area in which the hand plays an important role.
With our hands, we express ourselves non-verbally through gestures and touch. The hand can give comfort and express emotions. Function of the upper extremity depends on the performance of several systems, including the integumentary, vascular, muscular, skeletal, and nervous systems. An illness or injury that alters the functioning of any one of these systems will impair the performance of the upper extremity. It is not uncommon for a traumatic injury to involve most or all of these systems.