The key difference between preganglionic and postganglionic brachial plexus injury is that preganglionic brachial plexus injury causes avulsion of the nerve roots, while postganglionic brachial plexus injury does not cause avulsion of the nerve roots.
Preganglionic and postganglionic brachial plexus injuries are two different types of brachial plexus injuries. The brachial plexus is the network of nerves that runs through the cervical spine, neck, axilla, and into the arms. And, it is mainly responsible for muscular and cutaneous innervations of the entire upper limb. Brachial plexus injuries range in severity and cause. These injuries can be mild or severe. The traumatic factors that cause brachial plexus often lead to severe social and financial hardships and quality of life.
CONTENTS
1. Overview and Key Difference
2. What is Preganglionic Brachial Plexus Injury
3. What is Postganglionic Brachial Plexus Injury
4. Similarities – Preganglionic and Postganglionic Brachial Plexus Injury
5. Preganglionic vs Postganglionic Brachial Plexus Injury in Tabular Form
6. Summary – Preganglionic vs Postganglionic Brachial Plexus Injury
What is Preganglionic Brachial Plexus Injury?
Preganglionic brachial plexus injury is a type of brachial plexus injury that causes the avulsion of the nerve roots. It represents root avulsions or separations from the spinal cord. It is of two types: central avulsions (nerves are directly avulsed from the spinal cord) and intradural ruptures (nerve rootlets are ruptured very closer to the dorsal root ganglion). This type of injury has limited spontaneous recovery and a poor prognosis. Sometimes, surgical repair is also impossible. The signs and symptoms of preganglionic brachial plexus injury include avulsion of nerve roots, no proximal stump, no neuroma formation, presence of pseudo meningocele, presence of denervation of neck muscles and horner’s sign (ptosis, miosis, and anhydrosis).
Figure 01: Brachial Plexus Injury
Moreover, preganglionic brachial plexus injury is caused by high-speed injuries and other injuries. It is diagnosed through physical examination, EMG (electromyograph), myelogram, and histamine test. Furthermore, treatment options for preganglionic brachial plexus injury include pain control and surgical repair (nerve and muscle transfer).
What is Postganglionic Brachial Plexus Injury?
Postganglionic brachial plexus injury is a type of brachial plexus injury that does not cause avulsion of the nerve roots. In this type of injury, nerve roots remain intact. It is usually caused by traction injuries. The signs and symptoms of this condition include the presence of a proximal stump, the presence of neuroma formation, intact deep dorsal neck muscles, and the absence of a pseudo meningocele. Moreover, postganglionic brachial plexus injury has a better prognosis and less severe condition.
Postganglionic brachial plexus injury is diagnosed through physical examination, X-ray, EMG (electromyograph), nerve conduction study, MRI, and CT myelography. Furthermore, treatment options for postganglionic brachial plexus include pain relievers, physiotherapy, and surgical repairs (neurolysis and nerve graft).
What are the Similarities Between Preganglionic and Postganglionic Brachial Plexus Injury?
- Preganglionic and postganglionic brachial plexus injuries are two different types of brachial plexus injuries.
- Both injuries lead to cutaneous and muscular innervations of the entire upper limb.
- They are caused by physical injuries.
- Both injuries can be diagnosed through physical examination and imaging tests.
- They can be treated through surgical repairs.
What is the Difference Between Preganglionic and Postganglionic Brachial Plexus Injury?
Preganglionic brachial plexus injury is a type of brachial plexus injury that causes avulsion of the nerve roots, while postganglionic brachial plexus injury does not cause avulsion of the nerve roots. Thus, this is the key difference between preganglionic and postganglionic brachial plexus injury. Furthermore, preganglionic brachial plexus injury has a poor prognosis and is a more severe condition, while postganglionic brachial plexus injury has a better prognosis and is a less severe condition.
The below infographic presents the differences between preganglionic and postganglionic brachial plexus injury in tabular form for side-by-side comparison.
Summary – Preganglionic vs Postganglionic Brachial Plexus Injury
Preganglionic and postganglionic brachial plexus injuries are two different types of brachial plexus injuries. They are usually caused by physical injuries. Preganglionic brachial plexus injury causes the avulsion of the nerve roots, while postganglionic brachial plexus injury does not cause the avulsion of the nerve roots. So, this is the key difference between preganglionic and postganglionic brachial plexus injury.
Reference:
1. Dixit, Nikhil N, et al. “Preganglionic and Postganglionic Brachial Plexus Birth Injury Effects on Shoulder Muscle Growth.” The Journal of Hand Surgery, U.S. National Library of Medicine.
2. “Anatomy, Imaging, and Pathologic Conditions of the Brachial Plexus.” Radio Graphics.
Image Courtesy:
1. “Brachial plexus 1323” By Donthatemebro – Edited an image from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 3.0) via Commons Wikimedia