title: Clinical and electroneurographic evaluation of sensory/motor-differentiated nerve repair in the hand.
abstract: In 17 patients acetylcholinesterase activity was used to differentiate between sensory and motor fascicles in median and ulnar nerve repair of the hand. Eleven patients received follow-up evaluation 1 to 11 years after surgery, and at that time clinical and electroneurographic examinations were performed to evaluate the techniques. Clinical examination showed that four patients had regained on average 71.9% of hand function after median nerve repair, one patient had regained 83.6% of hand function after ulnar nerve repair, four patients had regained on average 53.3% of hand function after median and ulnar nerve repair, and two patients had regained on average 43.5% of hand function after median and partial ulnar nerve repair. The contribution of the ulnar nerve to reinnervation of the thenar muscles was 68.5%, whereas the median nerve did not contribute to reinnervation of the hypothenar muscles. Distal latencies for the median nerve showed a delay of 36% of the upper limit of normal value, and those for the ulnar nerve revealed a delay of 21.5%. This study demonstrated that sensory/motor-differentiated nerve repair of the median and ulnar nerves is possible and can be proven electroneurographically.
authors: Second Department of Plastic Surgery, University of Vienna, Austria.
authors: M
authors: M
authors: Deutinger
authors: W
authors: W
authors: Girsch
authors: G
authors: G
authors: Burggasser
authors: A
authors: A
authors: Windisch
authors: N
authors: N
authors: Mayr
authors: G
authors: G
authors: Freilinger
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D004594:Electrophysiology; D005260:Female; D006225:Hand / Q000294:innervation* / Q000601:surgery; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008475:Median Nerve / Q000293:injuries* / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000601:surgery; D008875:Middle Aged; D009068:Movement; D012677:Sensation; D014459:Ulnar Nerve / Q000293:injuries* / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000601:surgery