Anyone with BPI and No pain

[Aurelia]

Hi just wondering does anyone have a BPI and no pain as surgeon is uncertain whether I have a central cord (spinal syndrome) mixed in with a brachial injury and is going to send me for a brachial exploration. However, someone else has said that if you have a brachial injury you will certainly have pain...I know this is true of avulsions and lower brachial injuries but how about a stretch to an upper brachial injury. Should there still be this awful pain. I just have a sunburn pain to shoulder pain but its nothing like the pain that is described here.

[punchy sue]

Aurelia

First of all, I would like to know what brought this on. Where you in a car accident, fall down or have something heavy fall on you? Also how long ago did you notice the problem? In my case, which was an auto accident, immediatly after the accident, I had terrible pain in my left arm. They put me on morphine initially which is very freaky. Then I was sent to a rehab hospital where I had absolutely no pain in my arm. They only had me vicadin once a day and 2.5 fentenyl for a headache due to skull fractures. I went home 3 weeks later and just rested. I was basically with out pain for 1 1/2 months after my accident which I apparently avulved C6 -T1 nerve root. Then I started getting shooting pains up the pinky side of my forearm. That migrated into my hand. And now it really is unbearable. The pain mostly encorporates my forearm and hand, but occasionally it will cramp and burn up to my scapula muscles. Nerve pain sucks because no medications really touch it.
I am just telling you my experience and everyone's different.It is possible to have BPI without pain but it is really rare. I would keep up with getting answers from your docter. I would highly suggest you see a BPI specialist if you think that is what is causing the trouble.
Take care: SUSAN

[cbe411]

I have a C5&6 avulsion with my plexus injury. I experienced pain in the begining but two and a half years later, I am doing ok. I get muscle spasms/ cramps in my nuckles but nothing compared to the pain that I hear about on hear either. I Ahve quit smoking, try and stay busy mentally, and poaitivity helps bunches! Hope this helps, though still see a BPI doctor and see! Take care!
Courtney

[Aurelia]

Hi there Susan and Courtney

Thanks for input. I fell down stairs about 5 months ago and my MRI showed up spinal. Both shoulder areas are affected but the right is functional and improving, the left (c5,c6 deltoids and biceps)show nothing in nerve conduction tests. (they think avulsed or very badly stretched) Its just the surgeons think there may be a brachial complication on left side. I never have any real bad pain..just clickity bones in my shoulder girdle and a slight burning pain sometimes in shoulders which could be spinal but its not bad. I am being referred for an exploration. I was just wondering if anyone else doesn't have pain as if absolutely everyone has pain it really does sounds like I have blasted all my grey cells in my spine rather than a peripheral nerve injury and I would prefer it to be brachial.

[Aurelia]

PS. Susan sorry to hear about your pain and your injury. I know yours is a new injury. It does sound bad but from the other in the forums they generally say the pain improves with time. Hopefully yours will too.

[Christopher]

Aurelia,
One of the text books on Brachial Plexus Injury that I have, mentions that a small minority of individuals that avulse just the upper nerves (c5, c6, or c7) in the bracial plexus do not experiance any of the extreme nerve pain, expetially if it is just c5 or c6. But almost %100 experiance pain if they have a C8 or T1 avulsion. And it is worse pain usually if those lower nerves are avulsed. Hope this helps.

Christopher

[Lorrie]

Hi, my injury was almost 9 months ago, no avulsions but severe strething and the axillary nerve needed a 4 inch nerve graft. I do have some pain and early it was quite severe, Now it really is just light burning feeling and occassional shooting sensations. I say sensations because they really aren't that painful, mostly surprisingwhen it happens. As I've read these pages I've also wondered whether the fact that I don't have much pain is a good or bad sign or maybe just one more thing that proves everybody's injury is unique. My mri didn't show a lot, but because certain nerves and muscles weren't showing signs of regenerating the Dr. did an exploratory. He found a lot of scar tissue which was removed and did the nerve transfer. Still too early to know if the transfer was successful but since the scar tissue was removed I am seeing some response in triceps. So although you never know what they'll find, I'm glad I had the operation. But as so many others have said be sure you see a bpi specialist.

[admin]

Christopher-Who ever did the study to write the text you read never met me! C5,C6 and C7 are my injury and I am in pain that I can honestly say an average human would not be able to with stand it! I've seen doctors @ Mayo, UIC, and @ NW in Chicago and they all said the same thing "this is common with your type of nerve injury and there isn't much we can do for the pain" other than take drugs, no thanx!

[athos]

Hi,
I'm over 3 and 1/2 yrs post-accident now, and my pain has always been very moderate. I have never had the need to take pain medication, except for a few days after my 1st operation.
I stretched the posterior chord. The doc. asked me whether I was in pain, and when I replied "no" he justified it by saying that my stretch was down the plexus away from the spine. When u have avulsion or stretch near the spine, then apparently it can be very painful.

[admin]

help. i suffer from chronic bracial nerve pain due to sleep positioning problems. i feel like there is a line of fire shooting out my arm. Absolutely no position is comfortable... standing, sitting, lying...you name it.Alcohol is the only thing that numbs it, abiet temporarily. My chiro can't sem to help. Anybody?????????