Pathologic muscle coactivation after injury of the brachial plexus
Safronov, V.A.; Shevelev, I.N.
Zhurnal Nevropatologii i Psikhiatrii Imeni S.S. Korsakova 91(4): 40-44
1991
ISSN/ISBN: 0044-4588 PMID: 1650094 Document Number: 378389
As many as 58 patients with injury to the nerve trunks of brachial plexus were examined. As a consequence of the generation of nerve fibers after injury to brachial plexus or after surgical treatment, marked coactivation of muscles including antagonistic ones may not infrequently occur in patients at voluntary efforts. That coactivation may give rise to a noticeable decrease of the power effect of limb muscles. It may turn out at the same time that the same motoneurons act as representatives in different muscles. The most probable mechanism of pathological coactivation is the branching of axons during their branching into separate little branches each of which can, via the nerve membranes, grow towards different muscles including antagonistic ones. The branching of nerve fibers towards different muscles is likely to occur at anastomoses of the nerve trunk membranes. Thus, peculiar "nerve anastomoses" may occur. Via those anastomoses, nerve impulses have a possibility of "flowing" from one nerve to the other one. The phenomenon described should be taken into consideration in reconstructive surgery on brachial plexus.