The limitations a brachial plexus injury can bring

The brachial (arm) plexus (nerves) is a system of nerves which sends signals from the spine to the muscles in the shoulder, arm and hand, enabling them to move.

A brachial plexus injury could occur as a result of a sporting accident, an accident during military exercises or as a result of a trip and fall in a public place but it is most likely as a birth injury. In fact, between one and two in 1,000 sustain brachial plexus birth injuries.

Babies which are larger than average usually sustain brachial plexus injury as a result of a birth accident where the shoulders becomes squashed through use of forceps or as the baby emerges. Having said that, it is possible for babies of any size to sustain this birth injury.

One or more nerves could be injured during a birth injury. The four types of brachial plexus nerve injury are as follows:

1. An avulsion - the nerve is torn from the spine.
2. A rupture - the nerve is torn but not where it attaches to the spine.
3. A neuroma - the nerve has tried to heal itself but scar tissue has grown around the injury. The scar tissue puts pressure on the injured nerve and so the nerve cannot conduct signals to the muscles.
4. Praxis - the nerve has been damaged but not torn. These injuries heal on their own. If praxis is a birth injury, improvement should be seen within 3 months.

The effects of a brachial plexus injury can include paralysis of one or more of these muscles to different extents. While come children may lose muscle control and feeling in their arm, others may be able to move their arms but have little control over their wrist and hand.

Nerve surgery is one option for children who don't recover from a brachial plexus injury by five months and is most successful in children aged 5-12 months. For others, plastic surgery to transfer muscles and tendons may be needed at a later date.

A range of motion exercises can be performed two or three times a day to help keep the muscles and joints flexible. An occupational or physical therapist can teach parents the exercises so that they can perform these at home with their child.

Make a claim for brachial plexus injury
If you, or a loved, have been affected by a birth injury such as brachial plexus injury, cerebral palsy or pre-eclampsia as a result of medical negligence, then we are here to help.

YouClaim are the specialists when it comes to personal injury compensation claims; we are highly experienced when it comes to dealing with birth injury claims and we have a fantastic success rate.

Making an accident claim through us couldn't be simpler; it's completely hassle free and totally cost free. We are associated with a panel of personal injury solicitors who will talk you through each stage of the claims process and offer free legal advice along the way. Whether you live in Glasgow or London we will do our best to appoint you a solicitor who operates in your local area so that you have the opportunity to meet face to face if you wish.

When you pursue a no win, no fee compensation claim through us you won't have to pay out a penny for costs or fees, regardless of the outcome of your claim. In addition to this, we won't charge you a penny for our services and we promise that you will get to keep all compensation awarded to you.

For more information why not chat to one of our friendly claim advisors online? To make a claim for brachial plexus injury today fill out an online claim form or give us a call for free on 0800 10 757 95.