KINESIOL 3K03 Lecture Notes - Lecture 4: Brachial Plexus, Intervertebral Foramina, Triangle
2 Apr 2016
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Document Summary
Exit vertebrae and squeeze through: scalene triangle shaped muscles, under clavicle. Neuropraxia: transient conduction block, little to no structural failure, affects brachial plexus, if enough of these, mechanical disruption. Repeated injury may result in greater neurological damage: axonotmesis. Peripheral nerves heal slow and symptoms persist longer. Burning or stinging pain: paresthesia (altered sensation), numbness, shoulder through arm to hand, unilateral on side that experiences trauma. +/- muscular weakness: c5-c6, deltoid and elbow flexors, appearance of being dropped". Tensile (traction) mechanism involves both the cervical spine and shoulder girdle. Compression mechanism 1: inter-vertebral foramen closure, compression of the nerve roots as they become brachial plexus (clamp, extension or lateral flexion to same side. Compression mechanism 2: direct impact to plexus, brachial plexus can be superficial, erb"s point. Age may predispose us to one mechanism of injury over another. Older tend to experience compressive mechanism: as spine ages, intervertebral foramen tend to get smaller, more susceptible to closure mechanism.
