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Updated: Oct 23, 2025

Methods for In Vivo Biomechanical Testing on Brachial Plexus in Neonatal Piglets
Published on: December 19, 2019
Neonatal brachial plexus palsy and hand representation in children and young adults
Ruth Van der Looven1, Linda Hermans1, Anna Maria Coupe1
1Department of Physical and Rehabilitation Medicine, Child Rehabilitation, Ghent University Hospital, Ghent, Belgium.
Aim:
To assess the impact of neonatal brachial plexus palsy (NBPP) on higher-order hand representation.
Method:
Eighty-two left-handed children and adolescents with and without right-sided NBPP were recruited. Thirty-one participants with NBPP (mean age [SD] 11y 4mo [4y 4mo]; age range 6y 2mo-21y 0mo; 15 females; C5-6, n=4, C5-7, n=12, C5-T1, n=11, C5-T1 with Horner sign, n=4) were assessed along with 30 controls (mean age 11y 5mo [4y 4mo]; age range 6y 7mo-21y 7mo; 14 females). Participants' estimated hand size and shape on measure of implicit and explicit hand representation was assessed. A linear mixed model (LMM) was used to investigate the effect of condition, sensorimotor impairment, and age.
Results:
Individuals with NBPP showed a significant difference in implicit hand representation between affected and non-affected hands. LMM confirmed a significant influence of the severity of sensorimotor injury. Only the estimated implicit hand representation was associated with age, with a significant difference between 6- to 8-year-olds and 9- to 10-year-olds.
Interpretation:
The effect of sensorimotor impairment on central hand representation in individuals with NBPP is specific due to its implicit component and is characterized by finger length underestimation in the affected hand compared to the characteristic underestimation in the unaffected hand. Neither NBPP nor age impacted the explicit hand estimate. This study confirms the importance of sensorimotor contribution to the development of implicit hand representation.
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