Case Study: Use of Electrodiagnostic Evaluation to Assess Lumbar Radiculopathy

2016 ◽  
Vol 21 (2) ◽  
pp. 11-13
Author(s):  
Edward Dagher ◽  
James B. Talmage ◽  
Lorne Direnfeld ◽  
Christopher R. Brigham
Keyword(s):  
Nerve Root ◽  
Neuromuscular Disorders ◽  
Illness Behavior ◽  
Lumbar Radiculopathy ◽  
Paraspinal Muscles ◽  
Complementary Information ◽  
Sixth Edition ◽  
Self Reports ◽  
Important Diagnostic Tool

Abstract The electrodiagnostic examination is an important diagnostic tool that defines the location, pathophysiology, severity, and chronicity of a wide array of neuromuscular disorders. The test comprises two parts, a nerve conduction study (NCS) and needle electromyography (EMG), and is an extension of the neuromuscular portion of the physical examination. Together, NCS and EMG provide complementary information about the integrity of the peripheral nervous system. The article presents a case example that is evaluated using the AMA Guides to the Evaluation of Permanent Impairment (AMA Guides), Sixth Edition. The case describes a 52-year-old woman who had a back injury that was managed conservatively for fifteen months and then underwent a three-level lumbosacral instrumented posterolateral fusion (the rationale is unclear from the records). Her pain persisted and treatment has included chronic narcotics; she reported multiple physical and psychological complaints and difficulties, and illness behavior and unreliable self-reports failed to corroborate her reports. Needle EMG must be performed on the patient's paraspinal muscles for proper evaluation of radiculopathy, and in this case there was no evidence of involvement of any ventral ramus and thus no evidence was documented of nerve root abnormality involving two or more limb muscles that receive innervation from the same nerve root. For this individual, the changes seen in paraspinal EMGs were unlikely to be due to a true lumbar radiculopathy, which was not convincingly established.

Rating Spinal Nerve Extremity Impairment Using the Sixth Edition

2009 ◽  
Vol 14 (4) ◽  
pp. 1-6
Author(s):  
Christopher R. Brigham
Keyword(s):  
Nerve Root ◽  
Spinal Nerve ◽  
Upper Extremities ◽  
Motor Deficits ◽  
Nerve Injuries ◽  
Sixth Edition ◽  
Federal Employee ◽  
Nerve Root Injury ◽  
Root Injury ◽  
Rating Process

Abstract The AMAGuides to the Evaluation of Permanent Impairment (AMA Guides), Sixth Edition, does not provide a separate mechanism for rating spinal nerve injuries as extremity impairment; radiculopathy was reflected in the spinal rating process in Chapter 17, The Spine and Pelvis. Certain jurisdictions, such as the Federal Employee Compensation Act (FECA), rate nerve root injury as impairment involving the extremities rather than as part of the spine. This article presents an approach to rate spinal nerve impairments consistent with the AMA Guides, Sixth Edition, methodology. This approach should be used only when a jurisdiction requires ratings for extremities and precludes rating for the spine. A table in this article compares sensory and motor deficits according to the AMA Guides, Sixth and Fifth Editions; evaluators should be aware of changes between editions in methodology used to assign the final impairment. The authors present two tables regarding spinal nerve impairment: one for the upper extremities and one for the lower extremities. Both tables were developed using the methodology defined in the sixth edition. Using these tables and the process defined in the AMA Guides, Sixth Edition, evaluators can rate spinal nerve impairments for jurisdictions that do not permit rating for the spine and require rating for radiculopathy as an extremity impairment.

Impairment Tutorial: Neurological Impairment Evaluation: Overview of Sixth Edition Approaches

2008 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 6-8
Author(s):  
Lorne Direnfeld ◽  
Christopher R. Brigham ◽  
Elizabeth Genovese
Keyword(s):  
Spinal Cord ◽  
Neurological Impairment ◽  
Diagnostic Techniques ◽  
Neurological Deficits ◽  
Sixth Edition ◽  
Pain Disability ◽  
Whole Person ◽  
Disability Questionnaire ◽  
Cervical Plating

Abstract The AMA Guides to the Evaluation of Permanent Impairment (AMA Guides), does not provide a Diagnosis-based estimate of impairment due to syringomyelia, a disorder in which a cyst (syrinx), develops within the central spinal cord and destroys neural tissue as it expands. The AMA Guides, however, does provide an approach to rating a syringomyelia based on objective findings of neurological deficits identified during a neurological examination and demonstrated by standard diagnostic techniques. Syringomelia may occur after spinal cord trauma, including a contusion of the cord. A case study illustrates the rating process: The case patient is a 46-year-old male who fell backwards, landing on his upper back and head; over a five-year period he received a T5-6 laminectomy and later partial corpectomies of C5, C6, and C7, cervical discectomy C5-6 and C6-7; iliac crest strut graft fusion of C5-6 and C6-7; and anterior cervical plating of C5 to C7 for treatment of myelopathy; postoperatively, the patient developed dysphagia. The evaluating physician should determine which conditions are ratable, rate each of these components, and combine the resulting whole person impairments without omission or duplication of a ratable impairment. The article includes a pain disability questionnaire that can be used in conjunction with evaluations conducted according to Chapter 3, Pain, and Chapter 17, The Spine.

scholarly journals Case Study: Acute Lumbar Paraspinal Compartment Syndrome in an Austere Military Environment

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pete Allen ◽  
Jackson Pugh ◽  
Alexander Blau
Keyword(s):  
Compartment Syndrome ◽  
Negative Pressure ◽  
Negative Pressure Wound Therapy ◽  
Limited Resources ◽  
Paraspinal Muscles ◽  
Medical Department ◽  
Wound Therapy ◽  
Lower Back ◽  
Lumbar Paraspinal Muscles

ABSTRACT The incidence of compartment syndrome of the lumbar paraspinal muscles is exceedingly rare. Approximately 24 hours following a high-intensity kettlebell swing workout, a 33-year-old Sailor presented to the medical department on board a forward deployed Wasp-class amphibious assault ship with increasing discomfort in his middle and lower back, and evidence of rhabdomyolysis. Discomfort quickly turned to unrelenting pain coupled with dorsal paresthesias and rigidity in the paraspinal muscles. He was taken emergently to the operating room, where his paraspinal muscles were released via fasciotomy. As a result of limited resources aboard the deployed ship, a negative pressure wound dressing was fashioned using the supplies available aboard the ship. Following 3 days of the negative pressure wound therapy, muscle bulging decreased substantially, and the skin was closed. After 4 weeks of physical therapy, he returned to full duty.

scholarly journals Variations in selective nerve root block technique

2013 ◽  
Vol 95 (7) ◽  
pp. 515-518 ◽  
Author(s):  
NC Eastley ◽  
V Spiteri ◽  
ML Newey
Keyword(s):  
Local Anaesthetic ◽  
Nerve Root ◽  
Lumbar Radiculopathy ◽  
Vertebral Disc ◽  
Injection Techniques ◽  
Nerve Root Blocks ◽  
Tip Position ◽  
The Uk ◽  
Selective Nerve Root Block ◽  
Prolapsed Disc

Introduction Much literature reports on selective nerve root blocks (SNRBs) in cases of lumbosacral radiculopathy. Unfortunately, authors only inconsistently reveal the exact needle tip position relative to the causative pathology at the time of injection. Different injection sites may provide different symptomatic benefits. We investigated the variation in injection techniques of practitioners working in the UK. Methods A clinical scenario was devised depicting a patient with radiculopathy secondary to an L4/5 vertebral disc prolapse. Participants were questioned on their chosen management of this patient, focusing particularly on SNRB technique. Questionnaires were sent to spinal surgeons, pain management specialists and musculoskeletal radiologists. Results A total of 100 responses were detailed enough for inclusion. The majority (83%) of respondents reported they would inject local anaesthetic and steroids, 4% would inject local anaesthetic alone and 13% would inject a different substance. Over half (53%) would target the L5 nerve root, 26% the L4 nerve root, 12% the prolapsed disc itself and 9% two separate vertebral levels. Variation was also noted in needle tip location relative to the neural sheath. Conclusions When treating lumbar radiculopathy, there are apparent variations in the use and positioning of SNRBs for a given level of disc pathology. Needle tip position may have a direct influence on clinical outcome following SNRBs. Caution is therefore required when considering the validity of previously published studies investigating SNRBs and different injectates.

scholarly journals Mechanical Thresholds for Initiation and Persistence of Pain Following Nerve Root Injury: Mechanical and Chemical Contributions at Injury

2004 ◽  
Vol 126 (2) ◽  
pp. 258-263 ◽  
Author(s):  
Beth A. Winkelstein ◽  
Joyce A. DeLeo
Keyword(s):  
Nerve Root ◽  
Computational Models ◽  
Mechanical Deformation ◽  
Lumbar Radiculopathy ◽  
Nerve Roots ◽  
Injury Biomechanics ◽  
Nerve Root Injury ◽  
Sham Exposure ◽  
Behavioral Sensitivity ◽  
Mechanical Thresholds

There is much evidence supporting the hypothesis that magnitude of nerve root mechanical injury affects the nature of the physiological responses which can contribute to pain in lumbar radiculopathy. Specifically, injury magnitude has been shown to modulate behavioral hypersensitivity responses in animal models of radiculopathy. However, no study has determined the mechanical deformation thresholds for initiation and maintenance of the behavioral sensitivity in these models. Therefore, it was the purpose of this study to quantify the effects of mechanical and chemical contributions at injury on behavioral outcomes and to determine mechanical thresholds for pain onset and persistence. Male Holtzman rats received either a silk or chromic gut ligation of the L5 nerve roots, a sham exposure of the nerve roots, or a chromic exposure in which no mechanical deformation was applied but chromic gut material was placed on the roots. Using image analysis, nerve root radial strains were estimated at the time of injury. Behavioral hypersensitivity was assessed by measuring mechanical allodynia continuously throughout the study. Chromic gut ligations produced allodynia responses for nerve root strains at two-thirds of the magnitudes of those strains which produced the corresponding behaviors for silk ligation. Thresholds for nerve root compression producing the onset (8.4%) and persistence of pain (17.4%–22.2%) were determined for silk ligation in this lumbar radiculopathy model. Such mechanical thresholds for behavioral sensitivity in a painful radiculopathy model begin to provide biomechanical data which may have utility in broader experimental and computational models for relating injury biomechanics and physiologic responses of pain.

A Case Study on Designing a Passive Feeding-Assistive Orthosis for Arthrogryposis

2020 ◽  
Vol 14 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Miguel Nobre Castro ◽  
Tariq Rahman ◽  
Kristen Faith Nicholson ◽  
John Rasmussen ◽  
Shaoping Bai ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Elbow Joint ◽  
Neuromuscular Disorders ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
The Body ◽  
Assistive Devices ◽  
Assistive Device ◽  
Motor Deficit ◽  
Anterior Aspect ◽  
Joint Center

Abstract Passive arm-assistive devices play an important role in the rehabilitation of patients with neuromuscular disorders or injuries by overcoming their motor deficit. Routine human activities such as feeding are not possible without the aid provided by one of these devices or by a caregiver. In this study, a body-powered assistive device was designed for feeding purposes using a compact spherical scissors mechanism and zero-free-length (ZFL) springs (rubber bands) to leverage the patient's residual biceps and healthy triceps function. This partially balanced and lightweight orthosis was also projected to accommodate the spring attachment points closer to the elbow joint center. The performance of the prototype was evaluated on a young adult with bilateral amyoplasia of the biceps due to arthrogryposis who could not initially reach the superior anterior aspect of the close-to-torso region of the reachable three-dimensional (3D) workspace (RWS). That was accomplished by measuring the anatomical RWS of the patient before and while wearing the device. The results show that the patient, with the assistance provided by the device, was able to attain positions in the frontal close-to-torso region of the body that included reaching her mouth, thus enabling independent feeding.

scholarly journals Peculiar Clinical Presentation of Coxsackievirus B4 Infection: Neonatal Restrictive Cardiomyopathy

2017 ◽  
Vol 07 (02) ◽  
pp. e124-e126
Author(s):  
Pauline Le Van Quyen ◽  
Philippe Desprez ◽  
Angelo Livolsi ◽  
Véronique Lindner ◽  
Samira Fafi-Kremer ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Metabolic Diseases ◽  
Neuromuscular Disorders ◽  
Restrictive Cardiomyopathy ◽  
Male Infant ◽  
Genetic Syndromes ◽  
Rare Presentation ◽  
Pcr Screening ◽  
Coxsackievirus B4 ◽  
The Right

Introduction Restrictive cardiomyopathy in fetuses and neonates is extremely rare and has a poor outcome. Its etiology in neonates is elusive: metabolic diseases (e.g., Gaucher, Hurler syndrome), neuromuscular disorders (e.g., muscular dystrophies, myofibrillar myopathies), or rare presentation of genetic syndromes (e.g., Coffin–Lowry syndrome) account for a minority of the cases, the majority remaining idiopathic. Case Study We report the case of a 17-day-old male infant presenting cardiogenic shock following a restrictive dysfunction of the left ventricle. Postmortem investigations revealed coxsackievirus B4 myocarditis with histological lesions limited to the left heart. However, polymerase chain reaction (PCR) for coxsackievirus B4 was positive in the left as well as in the right ventricular samples. Conclusion In conclusion, coxsackievirus myocarditis is a cause of restrictive cardiomyopathy, and its diagnosis should involve PCR screening as a more sensitive technique.

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