Nerve Injuries
A 24-year-old man is thrown from his motorcycle and sustains a traction injury to his left shoulder. At 6 weeks post-injury, he has a flail arm with complete loss of shoulder, elbow, wrist, and hand function. He has ptosis and miosis of the left eye. MRI shows pseudomeningoceles at multiple levels. The surgeon discusses the injury pattern and reconstructive options. Regarding brachial plexus injuries:
Mark each as TRUE or FALSE
The brachial plexus is formed by C5-T1 nerve roots organized into trunks (upper C5-6, middle C7, low...
Erb-Duchenne palsy (C5-C6, upper trunk) causes the waiter's tip position with loss of shoulder abduc...
Erb palsy affects C8-T1 and Klumpke affects C5-C6; the brachial plexus has only 3 nerve roots; prega...
Preganglionic (root avulsion) injuries carry poor prognosis and cannot be directly repaired; signs i...
Surgical options include nerve grafting for postganglionic injuries (sural nerve donor) and nerve tr...
Answer the questions to see explanations
Click T (True) or F (False) for each option