United Brachial Plexus Network, Inc.

i am so new to this - i appreciate all your information - we were in icu for weeks on life support with 17 broken bones - 2 back, 2 neck, and others - those were the priorities so now i'm learning on the bpi (the dr's were not concerned with that until recently)- my sons surgery is taking the thigh muscle and tendon, the lower leg nerve & rerouting a nerve from the chest to the arm - u of m hospital stated by their emg that all nerves were avulsed - mayo clinic (a second opinion a couple weeks ago stated he may have some nerve activity by their emg) we are scheduled for a mylogram on 2/24/09 so we know for sure - he has regained shoulder movement to some degree - has no other and his hand is starting to freeze - the drs at mayo said i should be working his hand 4 to 5 times a day - we do occupational therapy for his arm twice a week & since he even had to learn to walk we do physical therapy 3 times a week - hes got lots of faith and a good attitude and would like to prove drs wrong but it is going on seven months and they feel surgery is a must - he just got permission to drive again as he also had tbi - that is also a learning experience for me to relax and ride with him - weve come a long way and that is why i would like some insight on this surgery - its all happening so quick - again thanks shelly

My fiance was in a similar situation as your son. After his snowmobile accident he was in the hospital for weeks as well. Before we left for the Mayo Clinic, we were told a variety of things regarding his injury. One physician told us that everything was avulsed, one told us that everything was intact and probably just a stretch injury. We had an EMG done here but was incomplete because the physicians had to leave for a meeting. After going to the Mayo, we learned that he had 4 of 5 nerves avulsed. He had no significant movement in his arm. He could use his shoulder a bit, but they contributed much of that to the use of accessory muscles not involved in the Brachial Plexus. After myelograms, xrays, cts, and EMG at the Mayo, they concluded that he needed surgery. He had the surgery that you are talking about. They transferred the gracilis muscle from his inner thigh and moved that to his arm. They also removed nerves from his legs and chest to help reinnervate the new muscle. As far as his recovery from the surgery 1 1/2 years later, he can bend his elbow and almost touch his face, he can begin to lift his arm foward in front of him about 30 degress and he is starting to be able to lift his arm out to the side a bit. We do get more movement in the water and use the hot tub for therapy. The resistance in the water is just perfect for his therapy. I hope that this helps you a bit. You are not alone. I know that when he first had this injury I felt so alone and confused about the whole thing, but here there is a lot of support and help. Many of the people are going through or have gone through the same things. It is great to hear that your son has a positive attitude. It is definitely a benefit with this injury. Please let me know if there is anything else I can help you with.

get his butt to mayo asap!!!!!!!!
at 6 months the chances of improvement go down

my mylogram showed all 5 gone also

had urgery 1/27, they found that c5 and c6 were connected

seriously, get to mayo and let them tell you...

we fly out 2/23/09 with mylogram scheduled 2/24/09, appts for pulmonary testing, etc. on the 25th with surgery scheduled on the 26th - would like to know about your recovery/surgery shep - this board has been such a blessing for information thanks shelly

ill try and keep everyone posted
its been 3 weeks and just got back from checkup

my ribs are still sore but my breathing is better since the lung tube was removed

nerve pain is still pretty bad

have had a lot of swelling in my leg,
they took out 500cc's of fluid on tuesday, and its back to swollen again, so ill pry go to er and have it removed

all in good time