These fibrous tunnels hold the tendons to the bony plane and prevent tendon bowing when the toes are flexed. Within each tunnel, the tendons are surrounded by a synovial sheath.
The tendons of the extensor digitorum longus, extensor digitorum brevis, and extensor hallucis longus pass into the dorsal aspect of the digits and expand over the proximal phalanges to form complex dorsal digital expansions (“extensor hoods”) (Fig. 6.117).