 More than 27,000 U.S. emergency room visits were attributed to an injury while opening an avocado. Most of those happening on weekends between April and July. Doctors call it avocado hand. Flexor tendon injuries and digital nerve injuries sound like not too bad injuries, but they're devastating injuries, mainly because the flexor tendons and the digital nerves take a long time to heal. You're talking three to six months to recover. Hand surgeon Dr. Roberto Michi says in some cases there's permanent nerve damage.