Prevention of Brachial Plexus Injuries at Birth

Brachial plexus palsy secondary to birth injuries.

We describe the long-term results in ten patients with obstetric brachial plexus palsy of anterior shoulder release combined with transfer of teres major and latissimus dorsi posteriorly and laterally to allow them to act as external rotators. Eight patients had a lesion of the superior trunk and two some involvement of the entire brachial plexus. The mean age at operation was six years, and th...

Birth injuries of the brachial plexus: incidence and prognosis.

Between March 1969 and May 1978, 36 babies sustained birth injuries of the brachial plexus at the National Women's Hospital, Auckland, New Zealand. This gives an incidence of 0.87 per 1000 live births. Nearly 80 per cent of these children had made a complete recovery by the age of 13 months, while none of those with significant residual defects has severe sensory or motor deficit of the hand.

Brachial plexus injuries.

Injuries to the brachial plexus are common and are the most severe of all lesions of peripheral nerves, but the last 25 years have seen considerable advances in treatment. Much of this improvement followed the restatement of surgical principles regarding the treatment of wounds, and the application of methods of diagnosis and techniques of nerve repair which had been established much earlier. I...

Infraclavicular Brachial Plexus Injuries.

Glenohumeral deformity in children with brachial plexus birth injuries.

Shoulder deformity remains the most common musculo-skeletal sequela following a brachial plexus birth injury. The natural history of untreated glenohumeral deformity is one of progression in this unique patient population. In infants and young children with persistent neurological deficits, shoulder dysfunction becomes a major source of morbidity, as these children have extreme difficulty placi...