1. A 39-year-old woman sustained a traumatic shoulder dislocation with a lower brachial plexus injury. She was initially treated with upper arm immobilization to the chest wall to place the plexus in a “resting” position, which eliminated tensile forces. In addition, she was prescribed a safe splint and forearm hemisling. Because the median nerve sustained a neurapraxic injury and the radial nerve sustained axonal degeneration, conduction returned to the medial nerve before the radial nerve. She was fitted with a combined wrist and metacarpophalangeal extension mobilization splint with spring assist replacing the lost radial nerve function. Splinting allowed functional prehension and early use of the intrinsic hand muscles, which prevented muscle atrophy and joint contractures.
Source: Orthotic Intervention for Peripheral Neuropathy, Peripheral Nerve Injury
Citation: Carp SJ. Peripheral Nerve Injury; 2015 Available at: Accessed: October 22, 2017
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