Brachial Plexus Injuries in Adults: Evaluation and Diagnostic Approach

Table 2

Factors that affect the prognosis of a peripheral nerve injury.

Factor	Result
Mechanism of injury	High energy injuries have worse prognosis; Avulsion injuries have worse prognosis than acute ruptures; Worse prognosis with concomitant vascular injury
Age	Better prognosis in young patients
Type of nerve	Exclusively sensory or motor nerves have better functional recovery than mixed nerves
Level of injury	Supraclavicular lesions have worse prognosis than infraclavicular; Upper trunk lesions have the best prognosis
Pain	Patients with persistent pain for more than 6 months after traumatic BPI have less possibilities for recovery
Time of surgical intervention	Fibrosis and degeneration of target organs at the time of surgical intervention are related to poor prognosis
Other factors	Concomitant diseases (infections, etc.) are related to worse prognosis