Elbow, Wrist & Hand

What It Is

Deep cuts on the palm side of your fingers, hand, wrist or forearm can damage the flexor tendons, which are the cord-like tissues that let you bend your fingers and thumb. Injuries to the flexor tendons can make it difficult or impossible to bend the thumb or fingers (AAOS, n.d.).

Flexor tendon injuries most often happen from a cut, for example when a hand goes through glass during a fall, or when an object being grabbed breaks and cuts the hand or wrist. Certain sports can also cause flexor tendon injuries. They often occur in football, rugby and wrestling. When one player grabs another player's jersey and a finger gets caught and pulled, "jersey finger" can occur, where the tendon is pulled off the bone (AAOS, n.d.).

Certain health conditions, such as rheumatoid arthritis, can weaken the tendons and make them more likely to tear. This can happen without warning or injury. A person might find that their finger no longer bends, but not remember how it happened (AAOS, n.d.).

Flexor Tendon Injuries Anatomy

Tendons are the tissues that connect your muscles to your bones. Whenever the muscles contract, the tendons pull on the bones, which makes that part of the body move. The muscles that move the thumb and fingers are mostly in the forearm. Long tendons run from these muscles through the wrist to attach to the small bones of the thumb and fingers.

To see your flexor tendons, look at the underside of your wrist and then make a fist. The tendons you can see appearing under the skin are flexor tendons, long string-like tissues that run up the forearm.

The tendons on the back of the hand straighten the fingers and are called extensor tendons. The tendons on the palm side bend the fingers and are called flexor tendons. Whenever you bend or straighten a finger, the flexor tendons slide through snug tunnels, called tendon sheaths, which keep the tendons in place close to the bones.

Not a diagnosis — for more information, contact me or another trusted healthcare provider.

Treatment

Self-Care & Treatment

How Flexor Tendon Injuries Are Treated

Flexor tendon injuries can be serious and often need an operation. Tendons can't heal unless the cut ends are touching, which doesn't happen with a complete tear because the ends pull apart. In most cases, a cut or torn tendon has to be repaired by a surgeon (AAOS, n.d.).

After examining your hand, the doctor may clean and close the wound and put your hand in a splint to protect it. The hospital team will decide when surgery should take place; in general, the sooner the repair is done, the better the recovery (AAOS, n.d.). If the injury is cutting off the blood flow to the finger or hand, surgery is done straight away.

Some partial tears may not need surgery and can be treated with a splint and exercises instead, but only after a doctor has fully assessed the injury (AAOS, n.d.).

After surgery, a long period of rehabilitation is needed. A repaired flexor tendon takes around 3 to 4 months to heal before the hand is strong enough to use without restrictions (AAOS, n.d.). Bending the fingers will be very limited to start with, partly because of swelling and partly because the tendons need to be protected and gradually retrained. Your surgeon and hand therapist will give you a splint and an exercise programme; follow their instructions exactly, as the result depends greatly on this (AAOS, n.d.).

Once your surgical team has cleared you, I can support the programme your surgeon and hand therapist give you. See the My Approach tab for how I work.

Tips

Cut or torn tendons in the wrist, forearm, palm or along the finger can make it very difficult or impossible to bend one or more of the finger joints.
Because the flexor tendons are close to the skin's surface, deep cuts can easily reach them, and the tendon may be cut in two.
The nerves and blood vessels of the fingers lie close to the tendons, so a cut can damage them too. This can cause numbness on one or both sides of the finger (AAOS, n.d.).
With a partial tear, you might still be able to bend your finger part of the way.
If a finger has no blood supply, immediate surgery is needed: call 911 or go to the emergency room at your nearest hospital.

Treatment

My Approach

After a flexor tendon repair, the tendon needs some controlled movement so it doesn't get stuck down by scar tissue, but too much force too soon can tear the repair. Your surgeon and hand therapist manage that balance with a splint and a very specific exercise schedule, and I work strictly alongside it. I need your surgical team's okay before any hands-on treatment, and I check what you've been cleared for at each stage.

During the Protected Weeks

Easing the neck, shoulder, upper arm and forearm, which often tense up while you're splinted
Gentle drainage above the splint, and keeping the hand raised, to help with swelling
Keeping the joints that aren't involved moving
Your splint stays on exactly as instructed; strong gripping or using the hand unprotected risks tearing the repair

Once You're Cleared

Tendon-gliding exercises (straight hand, hook fist, full fist), following your hand therapist's plan
Scar work once the wound has fully healed, easing stuck-down areas so the tendon can glide
Grip and strength work once your team allows resistance, building to everyday tasks, work and sport

If you feel a sudden pop or suddenly can't bend a finger, contact your surgeon or hand therapist straight away.

What to Expect

Typical Course

Typical course: During the protected weeks, visits are occasional and focus on the rest of the arm. Once you're cleared, often from about five or six weeks, visits are usually weekly, spacing out as you manage more at home. Following your surgical team's plan, a repaired tendon usually takes around 3 to 4 months to heal before you can use the hand without restrictions.

What I Focus On

Working Within Your Hand Therapist's Plan

Protecting the Repair

Tendon Gliding

Scar Mobilisation

Supporting Tissues

Please read

When to See a Doctor First

When to get emergency help

If you have a deep cut to your hand or fingers and your finger looks as though it has lost its blood supply, or you have lost feeling in it, call 911 or go to the emergency room at your nearest hospital. Do not eat or drink anything in case you need an operation straight away (AAOS, n.d.).

Any cut that might have damaged a tendon should be seen by a doctor as soon as possible. While you are getting help, press a clean cloth or bandage on the wound to slow the bleeding and keep your hand raised above the level of your heart (AAOS, n.d.).

Sources

References

American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (n.d.) Flexor tendon injuries. OrthoInfo. Available at: https://www.orthoinfo.org/diseases--conditions/flexor-tendon-injuries/ (Accessed: 7 October 2026).

Massage therapy · Kitchener–WaterlooFlexor Tendon Injuries

What It Is

Flexor Tendon Injuries Anatomy

Self-Care & Treatment

How Flexor Tendon Injuries Are Treated

Tips

My Approach

During the Protected Weeks

Once You're Cleared

Typical Course

When to See a Doctor First

When to get emergency help

References

Related Conditions

Book a session

Massage therapy · Kitchener–WaterlooFlexor Tendon Injuries

What It Is

Flexor Tendon Injuries Anatomy

Self-Care & Treatment

How Flexor Tendon Injuries Are Treated

Tips

My Approach

During the Protected Weeks

Once You're Cleared

Typical Course

When to See a Doctor First

When to get emergency help

References

Related Conditions

Finger Extensor Tendon Injury

Finger Tendon Rupture

Triceps Tendon Tear

Bowler's Thumb

Book a session