Authors' recommendations: Peripheral nerve injury affects more than 1 million people worldwide and leads to loss or disturbance of sensory and/or motor function mediated by the injured nerve. It is usually caused by traumatic injury (~90%) but may also be caused by surgical procedures (~10%). Approximately 80% of nerve injuries occur in the upper extremities and 10% in the lower extremities. Delays in reinnervation of the associated muscle can lead to a permanent loss of muscle function. Although the distal stump of a damaged nerve degenerates, the proximal segment has the ability to regenerate, restoring nerve function. Therefore, severed peripheral nerves demand prompt surgical exploration and repair. More than 200,000 peripheral nerve repair procedures are performed annually in the United States. Direct suture repair is used for short gaps in a nerve. Autologous nerve graft is the standard of care for repairing nerve gaps of up to 5 cm (centimeters) in length; however, autografts have numerous shortcomings including nerve size mismatch, need for 2 surgical sites, donor site morbidity, limited supply of donor nerve, scarring, and increased recovery time. Nerve gaps in excess of 5 cm require the use of an allograft, which necessitates immune suppression, rendering the patient susceptible to infection and tumor formation.

Project Status: Completed

Year Published: 2012

URL for published report: The report may be purchased from:http://www.hayesinc.com/hayes/crd/?crd=14272

English language abstract: An English language summary is available

Publication Type: Not Assigned

Country: United States

Organisation Name: HAYES, Inc.

Contact Address: 157 S. Broad Street, Suite 200, Lansdale, PA 19446, USA. Tel: 215 855 0615; Fax: 215 855 5218

Contact Name: saleinfo@hayesinc.com

Contact Email: saleinfo@hayesinc.com

Copyright: 2012 Winifred S. Hayes, Inc