title: Digital nerve reconstruction by multiple Y-shaped nerve grafts at the metacarpophalangeal joint level.
abstract: Digital nerve injuries are common; injuries of the common digital nerves are less frequent than those involving the proper digital nerves. Traditional techniques used to reconstruct peripheral nerves are: direct suture, autologous nerve grafts, autologous vein grafts, vascularised nerve graft and alloplastic nerve grafts. Autologous nerve grafts remain the most common conduits for segmental defects. Difficulties can arise when attempting to repair complex nerve gaps, particularly when joining the proximal stump of the common digital nerve with two distal stumps of proper digital nerves as in lesions involving the web space. We present below a case of such a lesion. We describe the use of the lateral antebrachial cutaneous nerve (LABCN) as donor nerve, by exploiting its natural branchings.
authors.affiliation: Department of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, University of Naples Federico II, Naples, Italy. fschona@libero.it
authors.forename: Fabrizio
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Schonauer
authors.forename: Salvatore
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Taglialatela Scafati
authors.forename: Ivan
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: La Rusca
authors.forename: Guido
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Molea
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D005383:Finger Injuries / Q000601:surgery*; D005385:Fingers / Q000294:innervation*; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008662:Metacarpophalangeal Joint / Q000294:innervation / Q000601:surgery*; D008866:Microsurgery / Q000379:methods; D016067:Nerve Transfer / Q000379:methods*; D059348:Peripheral Nerve Injuries; D010525:Peripheral Nerves / Q000601:surgery; D020127:Recovery of Function