Nerve repair: correlation of restitution of functional sensibility with specific cognitive capacities

To test the hypothesis that cognitive capacity is correlated with the outcome of functional sensibility after nerve repair, 19 patients were evaluated 2 to 5 years after median or ulnar nerve repair at the distal forearm level. The sensory evaluation included tests for functional sensibility as well as assessments addressing perception thresholds for touch/pressure and vibration. Psychometric tests for cognitive capacity were also carried out. Multiple regression analysis, correcting for the effect of age and the ability to perceive touch/vibration, was used to investigate the relationship between functional sensibility and cognitive capacity, and to determine which of the tested central nervous factors had the greatest influence on the outcome of recovery of functional sensibility. On a ranking list of such factors verbal learning and visuo-spatial logic capacity were the most important ones, indicating significant correlations with functional sensibility. It is concluded that cognitive capacity factors may play an important role for the functional outcome following nerve repair and that variations in such factors may help to explain the variability in the outcome of nerve repair.