Recovery of sensibility after suture of digital nerves.
A group of 49 patients with 74 injured digital nerves was studied more than 5 years following epineurial nerve suture. Three tests of return of sensibility were used: von Frey plastic filaments, a modified Weber two-point discrimination device, and a dynamic test--the plastic ridge. The correlation between two-point discrimination and tactilegnosis in the range of 8 to 12 mm was poor. The plastic ridge device detects the presence or absence of tactilegnosis in patients in the intermediate range of two-point discrimination between 8 and 12 mm. Of the factors studied, the patient's age at the time of nerve suture was found to be directly related to the return of sensibility by both two-point discrimination and ridge criteria.
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D002648:Child; D004192:Discrimination, Psychological / Q000502:physiology; D005260:Female; D005383:Finger Injuries / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000601:surgery*; D005385:Fingers / Q000294:innervation*; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008465:Mechanoreceptors / Q000503:physiopathology; D008875:Middle Aged; D009048:Motor Skills / Q000502:physiology; D009412:Nerve Fibers / Q000601:surgery; D009416:Nerve Regeneration; D011183:Postoperative Complications / Q000503:physiopathology; D011826:Radial Nerve / Q000293:injuries* / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000601:surgery; D014110:Touch / Q000502:physiology*; D014459:Ulnar Nerve / Q000293:injuries* / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000601:surgery