Retrospective study of functional outcome in adults with obstetrical brachial plexus injury who have not had neurosurgery

There is no research on functional outcome in adults with obstetric brachial
plexus injury. Nowadays nerve reconstruction is a possible treatment.
Neurosurgeons are reconsidering the indication for this intervention because
operated patients often still need orthopaedic surgery at a later time. It is
not clear if this happens more often or not in patients who have not had nerve
reconstruction. To get a better idea we need information on a group of patients
with comparable injury who have not had nerve reconstruction.
A second concern is that not many adults with obstetric brachial plexus injury
consult the department of rehabilitation or the neurosurgeon concerned with
peripheral nerve injury. The patients who do report themselves often have
serious limitations in their daily activities and complaints of pain. Because
of their serious complaints it is imaginable that patients who don't report do
experience limitations en and pain in a lesser degree. It is possible that with
intervention in an earlier stage the complaints can be prevented or decreased.
Patients may be not aware of the possibilities of intervention.

The objective of this study is determine the functional outcome in daily life
of adults with obstetric brachial plexus injury and determine which limitations
in daily life they encounter, functional as well as psychological and social.

Retrospective, observational study, without control group.

The participants are asked to visit the department of rehabilitation of the
LUMC. There they will be asked to fill out the questionnaires, a structured
physical examniation will be performed and the ARA test will be done.
It is estimated that all the tests will take 2 hours to complete.
There are no risks involved in this investigation.
The participants have no benefits in this investigation.