United Brachial Plexus Network, Inc.

Hi Ellen! I have a comment regarding muscle atrophy. I'm not sure about recovery but one of my surgeons told me that the lifespan of a muscle is usually 2 years. So once 2 years pass & if the arm is still paralyzed then the muscles are gone. Do you kow anything about this? I'm assuming it must take approximately the same amount of time for the muscle to recover. What do you think?

hi princess you know they say that the left hand side of the brain controls the right hand side of the body and vice versa so wouldnt that mean that only lefthanded people are in there wright mind. my injury consisted of c5 c6 c7 avulsed and t1 c8 were streched and sending very little signal. My typing is probably best described as a chicken pecking for corn

ha ha, thats funny. So hows your recovery going? I'd like to know the doctor who did your surgery to help you regain function in your arm. I'm checking with 3 in NY but any referred doctors are appreciated!

Hi princess my doctors name kevin yakuboff he is actually in the plastics team but specialies in brachial plexus injurys he works with university of cinncinati hospital in ohio my recovery hasnt really started yet but im started back again with therapy ill be sure and post it thou as soon as it starts.

Thanks hdcrash, good luck & keep us posted. I have my first appointment this Monday with with Dr. Abbott to see if I qualify for surgery. I have two more appointments with specialists on the 14th & 21st but I have major anxiety about Monday & feel like I'm about to lose it. I'm freakin out! Makes me nautious just thinking of sitting there & listening to what the doc has to say. Anyone have advice to calm me down??? This is soooo hard to handle!!! I'm scared like mouse when I need to be strong like bull!

Hey Chris i missed a few days, working to much. I was going to leave ny today for Fl, to have a oparation Tuseday by Dr Priece and Dr Grossmen but i have a cold so it has scrached till next month. They were going to fuss the wrist and free some tandonse from scar tesue on my for arm. To alow my fingers to work free. My fingers have good nervers they were just so badlly broken and the tadons tyed up in scare tisue that they don't hardlly work. so they are going to start thair ...........Paul

Ya thats the machin Elia..........Paul

Princess you should ad to your list 1. which nevers well they graft togather 2. Will this be one oparation,two or more. 3. What posdures well be done 1st stage, 2nd stage and time befor the next stage? And type of threpy to recover movment and how long. Paul

HDCrash-

Actually I got the user name because my name is Stuart Armstrong. Armstrong, kind of ironic since I have no use of my left arm. O and by the way my armpit was real bad after the intercostal, one of the stiches actually was rejected and a hole formed where the incision didnt heal. It was leaking a whole bunch of stuff and smelled real nasty. I just had surgery on the 1st to fix the hole. Dr. Nath in Houston, who did my previous surgeries cut the hole fully open and stuffed it with a couple feet of anti-biotic gauze. I have to pull it out an inch a day and sometimes it really hurts. Hopefully this will fix up the problem. Why can't they just leave our armpits alone and let us shower and clean, I can only wish . The next thing for me will be to clear my blocked subclavian and restore good circulation to my left arm. I'm seeing Dr. Lumsden who is chief of Vascular surgery at Baylor in Houston. I'm going down on the 19th to see what they will want to do to fix the blockage. Whatever it is it will be one of my more painful surgeries, Im sire of that. Anyway, keep me updated on your situation. The crossover you were talking about is very effective, at least what I've heard. That wasn't a viable option for me because I only avulsed 3 nerves. Typically if there is nothing to work with on the injured side they crossover the c7 nerve and work with that.

Sorry for the long reply.

Stuart

Hello!

my name is Hannes from Germany, i´m 24 years old and i´ve got an accident with my m-bike about 8 1/2 months ago. First of all I want to excuse myself for my bad english!
After a 8-week-rehabilitation I was able to use my left hand again. But not my left arm. So the doc has sent me to a hospital in Günzburg (neurosurgery specialists) to have a ct. Result : The C6/C7 roots are pulled out. The C5 can´t be reconstructed. So they decided to make a nerve transfer; out of my left calf up to my left shoulder to innervate my biceps. What I want to know is: Can someone tell which chances I have to bend my elbow again? Does someone has a pain like a sunburn in the thumb and forefinger? And how can I manage the pain? Can someone tell me sth about the muscle transfer trapez>delta?
I´m grateful for every kind of help! Thanx a lot!

Kind regard, Hannes