Nerve · Hand

Common palmar digital nerves

Nervi digitales palmares communes

The short shared trunks that carry sensation into the fingers. Three arise from the median nerve as it leaves the carpal tunnel and one from the ulnar nerve; each runs forward in the palm on the long flexor tendons, deep to the palmar aponeurosis and the superficial palmar arch, and divides at the web space into the two proper digital nerves that will travel up the facing sides of adjacent fingers. Each is therefore shared between two fingers, which is why numbness from a problem in the palm tends to affect one side of one finger and the facing side of its neighbour rather than a whole digit. The first and second also send twigs to the lumbrical muscles they pass.