The forearm fulfills an important role in the integrated function of the upper extremity. It maintains a stable link between the elbow and the wrist, provides an origin for many of the muscles that insert on the hand, and allows rotation of the wrist to position the hand more effectively in space. Acute injuries can involve different components of the forearm unit simultaneously, thus necessitating integrated treatment of all of the injured structures for recovery of function14,22,48,68,71,107. Chronic disorders of the forearm interfere with the stability, strength, and rotatory motion required to allow effective function of the hand. The treatment of these disorders is complex, as they involve both bone and soft-tissue structures; moreover, the lack of a generally accepted classification system leads to confusion regarding diagnosis and treatment. The anatomical location of the forearm between the elbow and the wrist has not inspired the intense scrutiny by subspecialists that has been provoked with regard to the hand, wrist, and elbow. The purpose of the current review is to discuss chronic skeletal disorders of the forearm in adults. Normal function of the forearm requires intact skeletal structures; a normal interosseous membrane; stable proximal and distal radio-ulnar joints; and normal soft-tissue structures, including the muscles, nerves, and vessels that are in the forearm and that traverse it. In the distal aspect of the forearm, the radius dwarfs the ulna and accounts for 80 per cent of the force transmitted from the wrist to the forearm100. The relative amount of force transmitted to the forearm from the wrist is closely associated with the relative lengths of the radius and ulna. Normally, the two bones are of nearly equal lengths51,63. Ulnar variance results if they …