title: A variation of the musculocutaneous nerve absent.
abstract: A variation of the brachial plexus, characterized by the absence of the musculocutaneous nerve on the left arm, was found during the dissection of a 28-year old male cadaver. The whole lateral cord was joined to the median nerve, which it met in two points. One was a typical junction of both roots of the median nerve at the level of the coracoid process. The other was a junction of the remaining lateral cord and the median nerve, which was 92 mm away from the typical junction. This case provided some evidence about the absence of the musculocutaneous nerve, rather than a complete fusion of the median and musculocutaneous nerves. As the nerves are named due to their course or innervation, and not from their origin, it is reasonable to assume that the combined nerve was actually the median nerve, and that the musculocutaneous nerve did not exist.
authors.affiliation: Division in Anatomy and Develomental Biology, Department of Oral Biology, Oral Science Research Center, College of Dentistry, Brain Korea 21 Project for Medical Science, Yonsei University, Seoul Korea.
authors.forename: Wu-Chul
authors.initials: WC
authors.lastname: Song
authors.forename: Han-Sung
authors.initials: HS
authors.lastname: Jung
authors.forename: Hee-Jin
authors.initials: HJ
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: Chuog
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Shin
authors.forename: Beob-Yi
authors.initials: BY
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: Ki-Seok
authors.initials: KS
authors.lastname: Koh
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001917:Brachial Plexus / Q000002:abnormalities / Q000473:pathology; D002102:Cadaver; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009138:Musculocutaneous Nerve / Q000002:abnormalities* / Q000473:pathology