Use of Myoelectric Limb Orthoses for Elbow Flexion in Patients with Brachial Plexus Injury: A Case Series

2020 ◽  
Vol 33 (1) ◽  
pp. 70-72
Author(s):  
Gregory R. Anderson ◽  
Taylor R. Beahrs ◽  
Michelle F. Kircher ◽  
Alexander Y. Shin
Keyword(s):  
Brachial Plexus ◽  
Brachial Plexus Injury ◽  
Case Series ◽  
Elbow Flexion

scholarly journals Brachial Plexus Injuries with Ulnar Musculocutaneous Transfer: 78 Cases Study Focused on Possible Postoperative Complications

2017 ◽  
Vol 38 (01) ◽  
pp. 007-011
Author(s):  
Márcio Corrêa ◽  
Márcio Cardoso ◽  
Ricardo Gepp ◽  
Marco Quiroga ◽  
Paulo Beraldo
Keyword(s):  
Brachial Plexus ◽  
Medical Records ◽  
Brachial Plexus Injury ◽  
Case Series ◽  
Elbow Flexion ◽  
Surgical Patients ◽  
Inclusion Criteria ◽  
Resonance Imaging ◽  
Magnetic Resonance Imaging Mri

Objective To analyze 78 cases of brachial plexus injury submitted to the Oberlin technique between 2003 and 2012. The potential complications of this technique were analyzed, especially motor damage or hypoesthesia of the hand. Method Medical records from patients with brachial plexus injuries at the levels of the C5-C6 and C5-C6-C7 vertebrae were retrospectively analyzed. Cases submitted to the Oberlin procedure with or without concomitant brachial plexus procedures between 2003 and 2012 were evaluated. The minimum follow-up period was of 1 year. In addition to the clinical examination, electromyography and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the brachial plexus were used to diagnose and locate the nerve damage. Results A total of 78 surgical patients met the inclusion criteria. Postoperative neurological changes, mostly transient, were observed in 18 patients. Hypoesthesia in the ulnar side of the hand was observed in seven cases; neuropathic pain in five cases; allodynia in four cases, and hand motor loss in two cases. Conclusion Based on the results of the present case series, we conclude that there are few sequelae in the donor nerve territory compared with the benefit of the Oberlin technique on the recovery of elbow flexion after brachial plexus injuries.

Nerve Graft Length and Recovery of Elbow Flexion Muscle Strength in Patients With Traumatic Brachial Plexus Injuries: Case Series

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mariano Socolovsky ◽  
Gilda di Masi ◽  
Gonzalo Bonilla ◽  
Ana Lovaglio ◽  
Kartik G Krishnan
Keyword(s):  
Brachial Plexus ◽  
Case Series ◽  
Target Function ◽  
Elbow Flexion ◽  
Nerve Graft ◽  
Spinal Accessory Nerve ◽  
Accessory Nerve ◽  
Nerve Reconstruction ◽  
Muscle Recovery ◽  
Spinal Accessory

Abstract BACKGROUND Traumatic brachial plexus injuries cause long-term maiming of patients. The major target function to restore in complex brachial plexus injury is elbow flexion. OBJECTIVE To retrospectively analyze the correlation between the length of the nerve graft and the strength of target muscle recovery in extraplexual and intraplexual nerve transfers. METHODS A total of 51 patients with complete or near-complete brachial plexus injuries were treated with a combination of nerve reconstruction strategies. The phrenic nerve (PN) was used as axon donor in 40 patients and the spinal accessory nerve was used in 11 patients. The recipient nerves were the anterior division of the upper trunk (AD), the musculocutaneous nerve (MC), or the biceps branches of the MC (BBs). An index comparing the strength of elbow flexion between the affected and the healthy arms was correlated with the choice of target nerve recipient and the length of nerve grafts, among other parameters. The mean follow-up was 4 yr. RESULTS Neither the choice of MC or BB as a recipient nor the length of the nerve graft showed a strong correlation with the strength of elbow flexion. The choice of very proximal recipient nerve (AD) led to axonal misrouting in 25% of the patients in whom no graft was employed. CONCLUSION The length of the nerve graft is not a negative factor for obtaining good muscle recovery for elbow flexion when using PN or spinal accessory nerve as axon donors in traumatic brachial plexus injuries.

Does technical components of microanastomoses influence the functional outcome of free gracilis muscle transfer for elbow flexion in traumatic brachial plexus injury?

2021 ◽  
pp. 102827
Author(s):  
Francisco Vilmar Felix Martins-Filho ◽  
Fernanda do Carmo Iwase ◽  
Gustavo Bersani Silva ◽  
Alvaro Baik Cho ◽  
Teng Hsiang Wei ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Brachial Plexus ◽  
Functional Outcome ◽  
Brachial Plexus Injury ◽  
Elbow Flexion ◽  
Gracilis Muscle ◽  
Muscle Transfer

Minimum Ten-Year Outcomes of Partial Ulnar Nerve Transfer for Restoration of Elbow Flexion in Patients with Upper Brachial Plexus Injury

2019 ◽  
Vol 24 (03) ◽  
pp. 283-288
Author(s):  
Yusuke Nagano ◽  
Daisuke Kawamura ◽  
Alaa Terkawi ◽  
Atsushi Urita ◽  
Yuichiro Matsui ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Muscle Strength ◽  
Brachial Plexus ◽  
Ulnar Nerve ◽  
Functional Outcomes ◽  
Brachial Plexus Injury ◽  
Nerve Transfer ◽  
Elbow Flexion ◽  
The Mean ◽  
Flexion Strength

Background: Partial ulnar nerve transfer to the biceps motor branch of the musculocutaneous nerve (Oberlin’s transfer) is a successful approach to restore elbow flexion in patients with upper brachial plexus injury (BPI). However, there is no report on more than 10 years subjective and objective outcomes. The purpose of this study was to clarify the long-term outcomes of Oberlin’s transfer based on the objective evaluation of elbow flexion strength and subjective functional evaluation of patients. Methods: Six patients with BPI who underwent Oberlin’s transfer were reviewed retrospectively by their medical records. The mean age at surgery was 29.5 years, and the mean follow-up duration was 13 years. The objective functional outcomes were evaluated by biceps muscle strength using the Medical Research Council (MRC) grade at preoperative, postoperative, and final follow-up. The patient-derived subjective functional outcomes were evaluated using the Quick Disability of the Arm, Shoulder, and Hand (QuickDASH) questionnaire at final follow-up. Results: All patients had MRC grade 0 (M0) or 1 (M1) elbow flexion strength before operation. Four patients gained M4 postoperatively and maintained or increased muscle strength at the final follow-up. One patient gained M3 postoperatively and at the final follow-up. Although one patient achieved M4 postoperatively, the strength was reduced to M2 due to additional disorder. The mean score of QuickDASH was 36.5 (range, 7–71). Patients were divided into two groups; three patients had lower scores and the other three patients had higher scores of QuickDASH. Conclusions: Oberlin’s transfer is effective in the restoration of elbow flexion and can maintain the strength for more than 10 years. Patients with upper BPI with restored elbow flexion strength and no complicated nerve disorders have over ten-year subjective satisfaction.

Comparison Between Supraclavicular Versus Video-Assisted Intrathoracic Phrenic Nerve Section for Transfer in Patients With Traumatic Brachial Plexus Injuries: Case Series

2020 ◽  
Vol 19 (3) ◽  
pp. 249-254
Author(s):  
Mariano Socolovsky ◽  
Marcio de Mendonça Cardoso ◽  
Ana Lovaglio ◽  
Gilda di Masi ◽  
Gonzalo Bonilla ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Brachial Plexus ◽  
Phrenic Nerve ◽  
Case Series ◽  
Nerve Transfer ◽  
Elbow Flexion ◽  
Nerve Section ◽  
Video Assisted ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Flexion Strength

Abstract BACKGROUND The phrenic nerve has been extensively reported to be a very powerful source of transferable axons in brachial plexus injuries. The most used technique used is supraclavicular sectioning of this nerve. More recently, video-assisted thoracoscopic techniques have been reported as a good alternative, since harvesting a longer phrenic nerve avoids the need of an interposed graft. OBJECTIVE To compare grafting vs phrenic nerve transfer via thoracoscopy with respect to mean elbow strength at final follow-up. METHODS A retrospective analysis was conducted among patients who underwent phrenic nerve transfer for elbow flexion at 2 centers from 2008 to 2017. All data analysis was performed in order to determine statistical significance among the analyzed variables. RESULTS A total of 32 patients underwent supraclavicular phrenic nerve transfer, while 28 underwent phrenic nerve transfer via video-assisted thoracoscopy. Demographic characteristics were similar in both groups. A statistically significant difference in elbow flexion strength recovery was observed, favoring the supraclavicular phrenic nerve section group against the intrathoracic group (P = .036). A moderate though nonsignificant difference was observed favoring the same group in mean elbow flexion strength. Also, statistical differences included patient age (P = .01) and earlier time from trauma to surgery (P = .069). CONCLUSION Comparing supraclavicular sectioning of the nerve vs video-assisted, intrathoracic nerve sectioning to restore elbow flexion showed that the former yielded statistically better results than the latter, in terms of the percentage of patients who achieve at least level 3 MRC strength at final follow-up. Furthermore, larger scale prospective studies assessing the long-term effects of phrenic nerve transfers remain necessary.

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