The heel of the hand muscles
Hypothenar muscles
Three small muscles forming the fleshy edge of your palm below the little finger.
What it does
The hypothenar muscles form the padded edge of the palm on the little-finger side. They move the little finger away from the others, bend it and rotate it slightly towards the thumb, helping cup the palm around objects.
Surprising fact
These muscles form the edge of the hand used for a karate chop and cushion the bones beneath.
Why it matters
They are supplied by the ulnar nerve, so wasting of this edge of the palm can be a sign that the nerve has been compressed at the elbow or wrist.
Nearby
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Sources
Drafted with AI help; awaiting a human fact-check against these sources.
Open in the 3D atlas · Suggest a correction · Not medical advice.
3D models: Z-Anatomy & BodyParts3D (CC BY-SA 4.0 / 2.1 JP). Card text CC BY 4.0.