Abstract
Unassisted hand surgery is being undertaken by necessity for both elective and emergency cases, due to hospital resource restrictions. The authors outline the principles of local anesthesia, surgeon-controlled tourniquet techniques, and a number of new instruments which allow a surgeon to work in comfort and safety, unassisted. The traditional surgical instruments designed for the days when trained surgical assistants were available to hold them are no longer suitable. We are entering a new era of surgical design with safer instruments that can complement our skills rather than challenge them. There are significant cost savings and efficiency when hand procedures are undertaken in the emergency and outpatient clinic settings.