[Physiotherapy applied to the upper extremity in 0 to 10-year-old children with obstetric brachial palsy: a systematic review]. / Fisioterapia aplicada en la extremidad superior a niños de 0 a 10 años con parálisis braquial obstétrica: revisión sistemática.

INTRODUCTION: Obstetric brachial palsy is involved with affected upper limb, resulting in permanent structural and function sequelae that limit the motion articular range and reduce independence in daily activities, as well as the children participation in their natural environment. AIM: To describe the physiotherapy treatments currently used to increase the affected upper limb functionality in children from 0 to 10 years diagnosed with obstetric brachial palsy. PATIENTS AND METHODS: A bibliographic search of published studies between 2009 and 2018 was carried out in the PubMed, PEDro, ScienceDirect and The Cochrane Library databases. RESULTS: After applying the inclusion/exclusion criteria, ten studies were obtained with favorable results for the affected upper limb functionality and bone mineralization density, regardless of the technique of choice used during the intervention. The used physiotherapy programs in the different studies such as Constraint Induced movement therapy, kinesiotape, electrotherapy, virtual reality and use of splints or orthotics were analyzed. CONCLUSION: All the described techniques suggest favorable results for the affected upper limb functionality in obstetric brachial palsy from 0 to 10 years.

TITLE: Fisioterapia aplicada en la extremidad superior a niños de 0 a 10 años con parálisis braquial obstétrica: revisión sistemática.Introducción. La parálisis braquial obstétrica cursa con afectación del miembro superior y da lugar a secuelas estructurales y de la función permanentes que limitan el rango articular de movimiento y reducen la independencia en las actividades cotidianas, así como la participación del niño dentro de su entorno natural. Objetivo. Describir los tratamientos de fisioterapia empleados en la actualidad para incrementar la funcionalidad de la extremidad superior afectada en niños de 0 a 10 años diagnosticados de parálisis braquial obstétrica. Pacientes y métodos. Se realizó una búsqueda bibliográfica de los trabajos publicados entre 2009 y 2018 en las bases de datos PubMed, PEDro, ScienceDirect y Cochrane Library. Resultados. Tras aplicar los criterios de inclusión/exclusión, se obtuvieron diez estudios con resultados favorables para la funcionalidad de la extremidad superior afectada y la densidad de mineralización ósea, independientemente de la técnica de elección utilizada durante la intervención. Se analizaron los programas de fisioterapia empleados en los diferentes estudios, como la terapia de movimiento inducido por restricción, el kinesiotape, la electroterapia, la realidad virtual y el uso de férulas u ortesis. Conclusión. Todas las técnicas descritas sugieren resultados favorables para la funcionalidad del miembro superior en niños de 0 a 10 años con parálisis braquial obstétrica.

Traumatic brachial plexus injury rehabilitation using neuromuscular electrical muscle stimulation in a polytrauma patient.

We report a 28-year-old man admitted postmotorcycle versus car in September 2017. The patient sustained multiple injuries in both the upper and lower limbs. He sustained a complex brachial plexus injury on his left side and was transferred immediately to Stanmore Hospital to undergo specialist surgery (supraclavicular brachial plexus exploration and neurolysis) to repair his brachial plexus injury. The patient was transferred back to the specialist trauma ward for additional surgeries for his subsequent injuries. Due to the complexity of the injury and surgery the patient was not able to start rehabilitation until six weeks post operation, at which point he was referred to outpatient physiotherapy. Prior to this his left upper limb was in a sling but was instructed to move it as able. The patient commenced his comprehensive physiotherapy programme in January 2018.

Plexopatía braquial por herpes zóster. Reporte de un caso / Herpes zoster brachial plexopathy. A case report

La plexopatía por herpes zoster es una enfermedad no común y pocas veces descrita en la literatura. Se presenta el caso de una mujer de 74 años con alteración motora, sensitiva y dolor neuropático en el miembro superior izquierdo por lesión axonal del cordón medial del plexo braquial secundario a herpes zoster. El compromiso axonal es poco frecuente, y tiene una presentación prolongada en el tiempo y un periodo de recuperación largo. Se realiza intervención a través de un equipo interdisciplinario, con el fin de disminuir y prevenir los daños ocasionados, permitiéndole a la paciente obtener el mayor grado de independencia funcional y control de su sintomatología (AU)

Herpes zoster plexopathy is an uncommon entity and few reports have been published in the literature. We report the case of a 74-year-old woman with neuropathic pain and motor and sensory and involvement in the left upper limb due to axonal injury of the medial cord of the brachial plexus secondary to herpes zoster. Axonal involvement is very unusual and has a prolonged presentation over time with a slow recovery period. Management was provided through an interdisciplinary team to reduce and prevent injury, allowing the patient to obtain the highest possible degree of functional independence and symptom control (AU)

Increased brain activation during motor imagery suggests central abnormality in Neonatal Brachial Plexus Palsy.

Neonatal Brachial Plexus Palsy (NBPP) may lead to permanent impairment of arm function. As NBPP occurs when central motor programs develop, these may be ill-formed. We studied elbow flexion and motor imagery with fMRI to search for abnormal motor programming. We compared the cortical activity of adults with conservatively treated NBPP to that of healthy individuals stratified for hand dominance, using fMRI BOLD tasks of elbow flexion and motor imagery of flexion. Additionally, resting-state networks and regional gray matter volume were studied. Sixteen adult NBPP patients (seven men; median age 29 years) and sixteen healthy subjects (seven men, median age 27 years) participated. Cortical activation was significantly higher in patients during flexion imagery compared to healthy individuals and it increased with lesion extent and muscle weakness. The contralateral and ipsilateral premotor cortex, and the contralateral motor cortex showed stronger activity during imagined flexion in the right-handed NBPP subjects compared to healthy individuals. Activity patterns during actual flexion did not differ between groups. No differences in resting-state network connectivity or gray matter amount were found between the groups. NBPP affected imagined but not actual elbow flexion, suggesting an impairment of motor planning which would indicate abnormal motor programming in NBPP.

Using Contingent Reinforcement to Augment Muscle Activation After Perinatal Brachial Plexus Injury: A Pilot Study.

AIM: Examine the feasibility of increasing muscle activation with electromyographically (EMG)-triggered musical-video as reinforcement for children with perinatal brachial plexus injury (PBPI). METHODS: Six children with PBPI (9.3 ± 6.3 months; 5 female, 1 male) and 13 typically developing (TD) controls (7.8 ± 3.5 months; 4 female, 9 males) participated. The left arm was affected in 5/6 children with PBPI. We recorded the integral (Vs) of biceps activation with surface EMG during two conditions per arm in one session: (1) 100 second (s) baseline without reinforcement and (2) 300 s reinforcement (musical-video triggered to play with biceps activation above threshold [V]). We examined the relation between the mean integral with reinforcement and hand preference. RESULTS: Mean biceps activation significantly increased from baseline in the affected arm of the group with PBPI by the 2nd (p < .008) and 3rd (p < .0004) 100 s intervals of reinforcement. Six of 6 children with PBPI and 12/13 TD controls increased activation in at least one arm. A lower integral was linked with hand preference for the unaffected right side in the PBPI group. CONCLUSION: This study supports contingent reinforcement as a feasible method to increase muscle activation. Future work will examine training dose and intensity to increase arm function.

Therapeutic application of electrical stimulation and constraint induced movement therapy in perinatal brachial plexus injury: A case report.

Infants and children with perinatal brachial plexus injury (PBPI) have motion limitations in the shoulder, elbow, forearm and hand that are dependent on the level of injury and degree of recovery. The injury and subsequent recovery period occur during critical periods of central and spinal neural development placing infants and children at-risk for developmental disregard and disuse of the affected arm and hand. A case report outlines the therapy and surgical interventions provided in the first 2 years of life for a child with global PBPI and a positive Horner's sign. Electrical stimulation and constraint induced movement therapy provided sequentially were effective therapy interventions. Neurosurgery to repair the brachial plexus was performed at an optimal time period.(2) The Assisting Hand Assessment,(12) Modified Mallet(13) and Active Movement Scale(14) are effective outcome measures in PBPI and served as valuable guides for therapy intervention. Oxford Level of Evidence: 3b; Individual Case Control Study.

A case study from a nursing and occupational therapy perspective - Providing care for a patient with a traumatic brachial plexus injury.

This paper presents a case study that demonstrates how collaborative working between professionals enhanced the holistic care for a patient following a traumatic brachial plexus injury. The paper will describe the patient's journey of care from initial presentation, diagnosis and assessment, acute care provision, discharge & rehabilitation to ongoing supportive counselling. The care encompasses input from both a nursing and occupational therapy perspective.

Clinical research of comprehensive rehabilitation in treating brachial plexus injury patients.

BACKGROUND: Brachial plexus injury is one of the difficult medical problems in the world. The aim of this study was to observe the clinical therapeutic effect of comprehensive rehabilitation in treating dysfunction after brachial plexus injury. METHODS: Forty-three cases of dysfunction after brachial plexus injury were divided into two groups randomly. The treatment group, which totaled 21 patients (including 14 cases of total brachial plexus injury and seven cases of branch brachial plexus injury), was treated with comprehensive rehabilitation including transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation, mid-frequency electrotherapy, Tuina therapy, and occupational therapy. The control group, which totaled 22 patients (including 16 cases of total brachial plexus injury and six cases of branch brachial plexus injury), was treated with home-based electrical nerve stimulation and occupational therapy. Each course was of 30 days duration and the patients received four courses totally. After four courses, the rehabilitation effect was evaluated according to the brachial plexus function evaluation standard and electromyogram (EMG) assessment. RESULTS: In the treatment group, there was significant difference in the scores of brachial plexus function pre- and post-treatment (P < 0.01) in both "total" and "branch" injury. The scores of two "total injury" groups had statistical differences (P < 0.01), while the scores of two "branch injury" groups had statistical differences (P < 0.05) after four courses. EMG suggested that the appearance of regeneration potentials of the recipient nerves in the treatment group was earlier than the control group and had significant differences (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: Comprehensive rehabilitation was more effective in treating dysfunction after brachial plexus injury than nonintegrated rehabilitation.

Comparison of electrical stimulation and conventional physiotherapy in functional rehabilitation in Erb's palsy.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Erb's Duchenne paralysis constitutes the single commonest form of brachial plexus injury. Treatment intervention is mainly by physical therapy and surgery. Popular or conventional physiotherapy approaches include exercise therapy, tactile stimulation, soft tissue manipulation techniques and functional splinting. The role of electrical stimulation has been reported in literature but not without differing opinions on its efficacy in early resolution of infantile Erbs palsy. OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this study is to compare the effects of electrical stimulation and conventional physiotherapy in the early resolution of function in infantile brachial plexus lesion. METHODS: Sixteen subjects who were diagnosed to have Erb's palsy were assigned randomly into two groups; A (n = 8) and B (n = 8). While group A was treated with electrical stimulation, group B had conventional physiotherapy treatment. Both groups were seen three times weekly and the study lasted 6 weeks. Four functional variables measured include (a) Shoulder Abduction, (b) Elbow flexion, (c) Wrist extension and (d) Arm circumference (6cm distal to the acromion process). These were evaluated at the baseline (pre-study), 3 weeks into the study and 6 weeks (end of study) periods. RESULTS: Functional variables did not differ significantly among the groups at the baseline (p > 0.05), shoulder range of motion showed significantly higher increase in group A. At the end of the 6-week intervention, statistically significant differences, with higher increase in group A than group B, were found in all the variables. CONCLUSION: The outcome of this study suggests that functional electrical stimulation may be preferred to conventional approach in the course of rehabilitation for an early resolution of function in Erbs paralysis.

[Treatment of early and late obstetric brachial plexus palsy]. / Vaiku peties nervinio rezginio pazeidimo ir jo sukeltu padariniu gydymas.

The aim of this study was to review and to analyze treatment patterns of early and late obstetric brachial plexus palsy. Eighty-one children with early and late obstetric brachial plexus palsy were treated in the Department of Pediatric Orthopedics and in the Postintensive Care Unit within the period 1988-2002. Children were classified into 2 groups according to age: Ist group (67 newborns) was treated conservatively, and IInd group (14 children with late obstetric brachial plexus palsy with deformity) underwent operative treatment. Active hand movements and innervation were evaluated before and after treatment. Thirty newborns had full recovery, 32 newborns had incomplete recovery, and in 5 cases no improvement was seen. Fourteen children with late obstetric brachial plexus palsy underwent the following operations: rotation osteotomy of the humerus was performed in 10 cases, lengthening of biceps and brachialis muscle tendons--in 6 cases, transposition of triceps muscle tendon--in 1 case, transposition of pectoralis major tendon--in 3 cases and flexor carpi transposition--in 1 case. There was an improvement in active hand movements after operative treatment and rehabilitation. According to our experience, in most cases newborns recover spontaneously or after conservative treatment. Secondary reconstructive surgery of late brachial plexus palsy can improve the condition of these patients.