Congenital hand surgery: what's new and what's coming.

Congenital hand surgery has advanced during the last 10 years with surgical technique improvements, the incorporation of new technologies, and an enhanced understanding of the basic pathology of upper extremity anomalies. This article reviews the literature with a survey of 70 articles from seven leading journals published in the last 12 years. The author concludes that the next decade should be even more exciting with the incorporation of an improved understanding of tissue engineering and molecular genetics into classification and treatment algorithms. Understanding the genetic pathways of normal, and therefore abnormal, development should allow improved classification schemes and intervention to prevent, modify, or remedy these birth abnormalities.