Root avulsion in brachial plexus injury: a case report

Root avulsions in brachial plexus injuries are classified as pre- or infraganglionic or post- or supraganglionic. Motor and sensory function is lost in both lesions, but the dorsal root ganglion is intact in preganglionic injuries and, therefore, sensory nerve conduction is spared. Although classified as root avulsion lesions, they are not only anatomically but physiologically and in being amenable to surgical treatment, quite different. We describe a patient with preganglionic injury who had a normal sensory nerve conduction. Surgical option was not available to this patient because of the proximity of the avulsed roots to the spinal cord.