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Epidemiological characteristics of surgically treated civilian traumatic brachial plexus injuries in Serbia

  • Original Article - Peripheral Nerves
  • Published:
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Abstract

Background

Traumatic brachial plexus injuries are generally severe, and in many cases associated with surrounding tissue injuries, which makes them hard to diagnose at the right time. This paper presents etiological and epidemiological characteristics of surgically treated civilian traumatic brachial plexus injuries.

Methods

This retrospective study included 68 patients, operated due to the traumatic brachial plexus injuries at Clinic for Neurosurgery, Clinical Center of Serbia, during the 11-year period.

Results

The vast majority of injured patients were men in full working maturity. In our study, there were seven different etiological factors. The road traffic accidents were the most common—41 (60.3%), while the motorcycle accidents were the most dominant subtype (53.7%) of all road traffic accidents, and also representing 32.4% of all causes of trauma. Supraclavicular elements of the brachial plexus were injured in more than 80% of patients. A total of 49 (72.1%) patients from our study had one or more associated injuries. The most common associated injuries were bone fractures, brain contusions, and vascular injuries.

Conclusion

Although rare, non-war-related severe brachial plexus injuries represent a group of patients carrying high risk of insufficient functional recovery regardless of treatment modality, or surgical technique. Epidemiological and etiological data are therefore very important to identify the groups in risk and to induce preventive actions aimed at these patients.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Medicine, University of Belgrade, Belgrade, Serbia

    L. Rasulić, A. Savić, M. Lepić, F. Vitošević & M. Samardžić

  2. Clinic for Neurosurgery, Clinical Center of Serbia, Belgrade, Serbia

    L. Rasulić, A. Savić & M. Samardžić

  3. Clinic for Neurosurgery, Military Medical Academy, Belgrade, Serbia

    M. Lepić

  4. College of Higher Vocational Studies “Sports Academy”, Belgrade, Serbia

    V. Puzović

  5. Faculty of Sports and Physical Education, University of Pristina, Kosovska Mitrovica, Serbia

    S. Karaleić

  6. Clinic for Neurosurgery, Clinical Center Kragujevac, Kragujevac, Serbia

    V. Kovačević

  7. Faculty of Medical Sciences, University of Kragujevac, Kragujevac, Serbia

    V. Kovačević

  8. Neuroradiology Department, Center for Radiology and MRI, Clinical Center of Serbia, Belgrade, Serbia

    F. Vitošević

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  1. L. Rasulić
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  2. A. Savić
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  4. V. Puzović
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  5. S. Karaleić
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  7. F. Vitošević
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  8. M. Samardžić
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to L. Rasulić.

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Conflict of interest

All authors certify that they have no affiliations with or involvement in any organization or entity with any financial interest (such as honoraria; educational grants; participation in speakers’ bureaus; membership, employment, consultancies, stock ownership, or other equity interest; and expert testimony or patent-licensing arrangements), or non-financial interest (such as personal or professional relationships, affiliations, knowledge or beliefs) in the subject matter or materials discussed in this manuscript.

Ethical approval

All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and/or national research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.

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Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study.

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Comments

This is a retrospective review of a center's experience with 68 patients who underwent surgery between January of 2000 and December of 2010. The manuscript is clearly written. The authors have already reported the surgical and clinical results of this group of patients. This is an epidemiologic survey that helps put this disorder in context relative to other types of traumatic injury

Michel Kliot

CA, USA

This article is part of the Topical Collection on Peripheral Nerves

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Rasulić, L., Savić, A., Lepić, M. et al. Epidemiological characteristics of surgically treated civilian traumatic brachial plexus injuries in Serbia. Acta Neurochir 160, 1837–1845 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00701-018-3640-7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00701-018-3640-7

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