Nerve transfer to relieve pain in upper brachial plexus injuries: Does it work?

Area of Science:

• Neurosurgery
• Orthopedic Surgery
• Pain Management

Background:

• Cervical nerve root avulsion (C5-C6) often leads to significant patient pain.
• Nerve transfer procedures are explored to alleviate neuropathic pain following brachial plexus injuries.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the efficacy of end-to-side nerve transfer from the superficial radial nerve to the median nerve in reducing pain.
• To assess pain reduction in patients with C5 and C6 nerve root avulsion.

Main Methods:

• Eleven patients with primary brachial plexus reconstruction underwent end-to-side superficial radial nerve to median nerve transfer.
• Visual Analog Scale (VAS) scores were used to compare pain levels before surgery and at a 6-month follow-up.

Main Results:

• Mean VAS scores significantly decreased from 8.5 pre-surgery to 0.7 post-surgery (P=0.0).
• At 6 months, 6 patients reported no pain, and 5 reported mild pain.

Conclusions:

• End-to-side nerve transfer of the superficial radial nerve into the median nerve is effective for pain reduction.
• This surgical technique offers a viable solution for managing pain in C5-C6 nerve root avulsion patients.