Multiple, not single, recipient muscle tendon transfers produce well-coordinated thumb-tip movement in lateral pinch grasp: a simulation study with application to restoration of improved grasp after tetraplegia.

Introduction: Tendon transfer surgeries that engage the flexor pollicis longus (FPL) muscle are commonly performed to enable lateral pinch grasp in persons with tetraplegia. Functional outcomes, however, have been mixed. This may be the case, in part, because the FPL produces hyperflexion at the interphalangeal (IP) joint and radial deviation at the carpometacarpal (CMC) joint.