The comparison of electrophysiologic findings of traumatic brachial plexopathies in a tertiary care center.
This study was undertaken to demonstrate the distribution of causative factors of brachial plexopathy (BP), to assess the association between the mechanism of injuries and the predominant level of the brachial plexus involved in the injuries, and to characterize the extent and degree of severity of injury in patients with BPI. It consisted of a cross-sectional, retrospective review of electrophysiological data of 5547 patients with 117 patients being identified as having BPI, of whom 86 patients were recruited into the study. The patients were divided into six subgroups according to the mechanism of the damage. The injury was subdivided according to the brachial plexus levels predominantly affected, and each component of the four major anatomical plexus levels-root, trunk, cord and nerve levels was analyzed. The affiliation between the type of injuries and the specified brachial plexus levels was calculated via a two-tailed Fisher's exact test. These findings demonstrated that the type of brachial plexus injury (BPI) is significantly related to the brachial plexus level involved. The motorcycle and birth injury groups were affected at the trunk level, the fall group at the nerve level, the automobile group at the cord level, and the blunt injury group at the cord or nerve level. Moreover, the majority of patients in the motorcycle, fall, and pedestrian groups suffered from severe, incomplete lesions, while the neurophysiological results of the other groups varied.
Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Taipei Veterans General Hospital, National Yang-Ming University, 201 Shih-Pai Road, Sec 2, Peitou, 11217, ROC, Taipei, Taiwan. tychuang@vghtpe.gov.tw
Tien-Yow
TY
Chuang
Fang-Yao
FY
Chiu
Yun-An
YA
Tsai
Shu-Chiung
SC
Chiang
Der-Jen
DJ
Yen
Henrich
H
Cheng
D000063:Accidents, Traffic; D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001917:Brachial Plexus / Q000293:injuries* / Q000473:pathology; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D004568:Electrodiagnosis; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012189:Retrospective Studies