Turkish Neurosurgery 2018 , Vol 28 , Num 5
Anatomical Variations of Brachial Plexus in Fetal Cadavers
Alparslan KIRIK1,Senem Ertugrul MUT2,Mehmet Kadri DANEYEMEZ3,Halil Ibrahim SECER4
1Etimesgut Sehit Sait Erturk State Hospital, Neurosurgery Clinic, Ankara, Turkey
2University of Kyrenia, Faculty of Medicine, Visiting Professor, Near East University, Faculty of Medicine, Department of Neurology, Girne, Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus
3University of Health Sciences, Gulhane Training and Research Hospital, Department of Neurosurgery, Ankara, Turkey
4University of Kyrenia, Faculty of Medicine, Visiting Professor, Near East University, Faculty of Medicine, Department of Neurosurgery, Girne, Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus
DOI : 10.5137/1019-5149.JTN.21339-17.2 AIM: To demonstrate the anatomical variations of the infantile brachial plexus.

MATERIAL and METHODS: A total of 20 plexus brachialis from 11 fetal cadavers were dissected and examined microscopically. The branching patterns and variations were evaluated. The width of the nerves was assessed at the level of the nerve root, trunk and cord on the basis of all brachial plexuses and they were arranged in terms of thickness.

RESULTS: Half of the brachial plexuses were found to be prefıxed, while 15% were found to be postfixed. Truncus superior, medial cord and nervus ulnaris were found in normal formation, whereas anatomical variations were detected in the rest of the structures. The plexus brachialis elements were arranged in the following order from large to small according to their average thicknesses: C7>C6>C8>C5=T1; TS>TI>TM; PC>LC>MC.

CONCLUSION: Since the risk of injury for variated branches is higher, understanding the anatomical variations of plexus brachialis and its extensions are of significant importance during surgical intervention. Keywords : Anatomical variation, Brachial plexus, Fetus

Corresponding author : Halil Ibrahim SECER, hisecer@yahoo.com