Functional outcomes after treatment of traumatic brachial plexus injuries: clinical study.

BACKGROUND The aim of this study is to evaluate functional outcome and quality of life using statistically validated tools. METHODS Participating patients were called and asked questions from the Short Form 36 (SF-36), the Disability of the Arm, Shoulder and Hand (DASH) questionnaire, a pain scale and an additional question on their satisfaction with surgery. RESULTS A total of 33 patients were operated by a single surgeon (MI) between 1997 and 2010 at the Neurosurgery Department of Istanbul School of Medicine. Three of these patients refused to participate and three other patients were excluded, leaving 27 patients, with an average follow-up of 79,6 months, for review. The most common cause of traumatic brachial plexus injuries (TBPI) was motor vehicle accidents. Fourteen patients had isolated supraclavicular injuries and three patients had infraclavicular injuries. The remaining 10 patients' injuries were both supra- and infraclavicular. Avulsion was encountered in three patients. The patients who were operated within the first six months after trauma represented significantly better scores in DASH, SF-36 and pain scale. CONCLUSION Statistically validated tests like DASH and SF-36 questionnaires are valuable tools for evaluating TBPI patients. Centers specialized in treating TBPI with surgery may use these tests pre- and postoperatively which lead to objective personalized evaluation of patients' subjective symptoms.