As medical board chairman of North Queensland X-Ray Services and Territory X-Ray Services of Cairns, Australia, Dr. Rauf Yousaf draws on an in-depth knowledge of anatomy and the imaging technology required to assess it. In 2012, Dr. Rauf Yousaf presented on the pulley system of the hand at the New South Wales branch meeting of the Australian Sonographers Association
To facilitate the complex hand movements required for both everyday and complex tasks, the body relies on precise muscular control. This control stems largely from the presence of a biomechanical pulley system on the fingers, which include a system of flexor tendons and attached connective tissue. These lengths of tissues form the pulleys themselves.
Each finger contains two primary types of pulleys. The most crucial set includes the five annular pulleys, termed A1 and A5 starting from the most proximal to the hand. The A2 and A4 pulleys are the largest and are located closer to the center of each finger bone, while the minor A1, A3, and A5 pulleys lie closer to the joints and creases of the fingers.
The cruciate pulleys, named C1 through C3, provide additional support. They are significantly smaller than the annular pulleys and cross the surface of the digit. While the outer cruciate pulleys lie distal to the A2 and A4 pulleys, the C2 pulley stretches between the A3 and A4.
