[The forearm: no longer a suitable area for obtaining grafts for skin defects of the hand]

In the emergency room, as well as during elective surgery, the surgeon is often confronted with an absolute skin defect. In the older books on hand surgery the inner, volar aspect of the forearm was advised as a suitable donor area for skin grafts of either split or full thickness. Nowadays, the disfigurement in the donor area is considered unjustifiable. Since it is almost impossible to correct these scars more suitable donor sites have to be looked for. Some areas are suggested. It is advised to avoid the forearm as a routine donor area in case of skin defects in the hand.