Aponeuroses

Looks like

Flat, shiny sheets of tendon, like a wide ribbon, found in the scalp, the belly wall and the palm and sole.

What it does

Attach broad muscles to bones or to each other, spreading their pull.

Keeping it well

The palm's aponeurosis can thicken into cords that bend the fingers in (Dupuytren's disease); treatment is needed once the hand cannot lie flat.

Related conditions

• Sarcoma