Abstract
Introduction: Traumatic injury to a peripheral nerve with loss of continuity is a disabling condition due to denervation. Traditional treatment consists of nerve grafting with the consequence of unwanted side effects at the donor site (sural nerve).
Aims: To present an alternative treatment using two different biomaterials as implants bridging both ends of nerve.
Materials and Methods: The same hand surgeon treated twenty-one patients with traumatic laceration of less than 3 cm in the upper limb. Two different kind of flexible tubular sheaths were implanted: 18 patients with one and 3 with other. An independent observer assessed McKenney’s and two points discrimination tests for functional out come. We describe the surgical technique and report the full data.
Discussion: Polyglicolic acid is designed to create a conduct for axonal growth across a nerve gap making it unnecessary to carry out a nerve grafting. Its use is feasible in clean wounds less than 3 cm in length. It is technically easy to implant and reabsorbed within 3 months.
Conclusions: The satisfactory results in terms of functional recovery suggest the convenience of this technique to shorten the operating time and avoid donor site side effects.
The abstracts were prepared by Eleni Koutsoukou. Correspondence should be addressed to him at the Hellenic Association of Orthopaedic Surgery and Traumatology (HAOST), 20, A. Fleming str, 15123 Marousi, Athens, Greece.
