Pinnacle Guru · Published archive
Collab Topic - Sai Chand
Published
TOPIC:BRACHIAL PLEXUS
*DEFINITION:The brachial plexus consists of five nerves that branch off from your spinal cord at your neck and conduct signals from your spinal cord to your shoulder, arm and hand. You have a brachial plexus on each side of your body.
*The main types of brachial plexus injuries include:
*Stretch (neuropraxia): This happens when a brachial plexus nerve mildly stretches, which damages the protective covering of the nerve. This causes problems with nerve signal conduction but doesn’t always result in damage to the nerve underneath. It may heal on its own or require simple, nonsurgical treatment methods such as physical therapy to return to normal function.
*Rupture: This happens when a more forceful stretch of a brachial plexus nerve causes it to tear partially or fully. These types of injuries can often be repaired with surgery.
*Avulsion: This is the most severe type of brachial plexus injury. It happens when the nerve root tears away from your spinal cord. These types of injuries require surgery to regain function.
*The most common symptoms of a brachial plexus injury in children and adults include:
*A limp arm.
*Paralysis in your arm or hand.
*Diminished muscle control in your arm, hand or wrist.
*A lack of feeling or sensation (numbness) in your arm or hand.
*Pain in your arm, hand or wrist
*DIAGNOSIS:
*X-RAY
clear pictures of dense structures, like bone, using small safe amounts of radiation. You’ll likely get X-rays of your neck, chest, shoulder and arm to rule out associated bone fractures, especially since brachial plexus injuries typically happen from traumatic injuries.
*CT SCANComputed tomography (CT) myelogram scan: A CT myelogram scan shows structures inside your body by using X-rays and computers to produce images with a special dye injection around your spinal nerves. Providers consider this imaging test the most reliable test for detecting spinal nerve avulsion injuries. Some providers may also use magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) instead of, or in addition to, a CT scan.
*TREATMENT:
brachial plexus injury is best managed by a team of medical professionals that may include a:
*Neurologist.
*Neurosurgeon.
*Hand surgeon.
*Physical therapist.
*Occupational therapist.
*Primary healthcare provider.
*There are two main types of treatment for brachial plexus injuries: nonsurgical and surgical.
*Types of surgical procedures:
*Nerve repair
*Nerve graft
*Nerve Transfer
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