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Ulnar Nerve Transposition
I am post Ulnar Nerve Transpo (sub skin) almost 18 mo. I currently still have extreme pain in my elbow and numbness in my hand. The numbness is after say 5-10 minutes of use. The damage done to the nerve was extensive (burnt noodle the size of a pipe cleaner. My repeat EMG done a month ago shows normal conduction. I've been told that my only options are live with it or have a second surgery for submuscular. He also said possibly to have the head of the ulna modified. I am a 41 y/o firefighter/paramedic. This injury occurred 4 years ago when a roof fell on top of my crew. Will I benefit from either of these procedures?
do not be afraid of this surgery. i had it went i was 14 years old, and pain was minimal. but i should also mention i had the ANTERIOR transposition, not the subcutaneous. the subcutaneous requires a cut of a muscle so the ulnar nerve can be placed underneath it, while in an anterior, the nerve is "grooved" between the for-arm muscles. the recovery time is quicker and allows for a greater range of motion of the nerve. you will find most football athletes or people with high contact and truma to their elbow joint end up having the subcutaneous because it provides more protection, but the recovery time is a little longer.
since EMG's were brought up, i'll explain what it is for those who don't know or understand. Electromyography, or EMG, involves testing the electrical activity of muscles. this test is often performed with another test, a nerve conduction study. this is a test that measures the conducting function of nerves. EMG requires a very small needle to be inserted into a muscle that the specific nerve controls. you will not feel the needle and it does not give off an electrical current if you were worried about that. you are then asked to move the muscle causing the muscle to contract, thus the electrical activity of the muscle can be measured. in a nerve conduction study, no needles are required. a pad is placed on the muscle and stimulates the muscle. the test records the time it takes for the specific nerve to fire a reaction for the muscle to contract due to the stimulation. both are very unpainful and provide valuable information concerning yor condition.
my surgery was outpatient and i had barely any pain. i was in a soft cast for 7 days and jumped right into occupational therapy. they did give me pain meds, but they weren't needed. the recovery went extremely well, and i'm happy to say i'm back to where i was before, if not better, before i had the transposition. the feeling in my fingers was not affected, and my motor skills were regained in occupational. before i knew it, i was doing what i love the most, playing baseball again in 9 weeks!! eventhough i was still limited, i could play light catch and swing the bat 100%. actually, i came back stronger than before.
you may question my knowledge on this subject because of my young age, but i went through the same questions and the process of weighing out the outcomes. i used much of my down time to research these conditions and am confident in my knowledge of them.
i hope this will help you if you are considering this procedure. if you have any other questions about what i have mentioned, i would be happy to answer them.
since EMG's were brought up, i'll explain what it is for those who don't know or understand. Electromyography, or EMG, involves testing the electrical activity of muscles. this test is often performed with another test, a nerve conduction study. this is a test that measures the conducting function of nerves. EMG requires a very small needle to be inserted into a muscle that the specific nerve controls. you will not feel the needle and it does not give off an electrical current if you were worried about that. you are then asked to move the muscle causing the muscle to contract, thus the electrical activity of the muscle can be measured. in a nerve conduction study, no needles are required. a pad is placed on the muscle and stimulates the muscle. the test records the time it takes for the specific nerve to fire a reaction for the muscle to contract due to the stimulation. both are very unpainful and provide valuable information concerning yor condition.
my surgery was outpatient and i had barely any pain. i was in a soft cast for 7 days and jumped right into occupational therapy. they did give me pain meds, but they weren't needed. the recovery went extremely well, and i'm happy to say i'm back to where i was before, if not better, before i had the transposition. the feeling in my fingers was not affected, and my motor skills were regained in occupational. before i knew it, i was doing what i love the most, playing baseball again in 9 weeks!! eventhough i was still limited, i could play light catch and swing the bat 100%. actually, i came back stronger than before.
you may question my knowledge on this subject because of my young age, but i went through the same questions and the process of weighing out the outcomes. i used much of my down time to research these conditions and am confident in my knowledge of them.
i hope this will help you if you are considering this procedure. if you have any other questions about what i have mentioned, i would be happy to answer them.
I am considering having the surgery after the results of an ulnar nerve ultrasound are known. But you guys are scaring the heck out of me! I had a spinal fusion in my neck and awoke with severe pain in my right hand. It was imediately diagnosed as CRPS. After 3 years of treatment and 8 doctors later, MAYO clinic ruled out CRPS and attributed it to some sort of injury. Now an ulnar nerve transposition is being considered. After almost 4 years of severe pain I wonder if I'm better off the way I am now!
also did not mind the nerve conduction study test but could only stand 4 of the needles for the EMG part of the study, doc kep pulling them out and restickin me and he had swabbed w/ alcohol about 10 spots so i knew i had way more to go but made them stop after they got the ulnar spots... the rest i said they would just have to find a diff test to rule out if it was coming from neck. but emg torture is nothing compared to t his post op pain... off the scale 15+ pain... my advice is to stay in hospital 1st night and get shots or iv pain mgt before going home on pills
i just had this done this week, consider myself strong for handling pain but this pain i past natural chilbirth and about up therew/ dry socket pain of dental. this is hell an this half cast is eating a hole in me, causing compression cube syndrome. i think being paralyzed in arm/hand was a better option than this repair ... thy also removed a 1/2 dollar sized bone chip .... not enough pain pills to manage this hell.
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