Peripheral Nerve Injury
Injury to the nerves outside the brain and spinal cord — from trauma, compression, or surgery — that can cause weakness, numbness, or pain, and which often improves with nerve repair, decompression, or nerve transfer.
Peripheral nerve pathway
From injury assessment to reconstruction
Diagnosis
Define the injured nerve, severity, timing, and pattern of weakness or pain.
Timing
Determine whether observation, urgent repair, or reconstruction is most appropriate.
Reconstruction plan
Choose repair, grafting, decompression, tumor surgery, or nerve transfer.
Recovery
Track regeneration, therapy progress, pain control, and functional return.
Time-sensitive repair
Early specialist review can preserve options for nerve repair, grafting, or transfer.
Anatomic diagnosis
Exam, imaging, EMG, and surgical history help define the level and severity of injury.
Function-first planning
Treatment is chosen around realistic goals for movement, sensation, pain, and independence.
Overview
Peripheral nerves carry signals between the brain and spinal cord and the rest of the body, controlling movement and sensation in the arms, legs, and trunk. These nerves can be injured by cuts and trauma, stretch, pressure and entrapment, tumors, or as a complication of surgery. Depending on severity, the result can be numbness, weakness, or chronic nerve pain.
Some nerve injuries recover on their own; others need surgery, and the timing of that surgery strongly affects the outcome. Specialist evaluation helps distinguish the two.
Symptoms
- Numbness, tingling, or loss of sensation
- Weakness or paralysis of specific muscles
- Burning, stabbing, or electric-shock pain
- Muscle wasting in long-standing injuries
- Symptoms that worsen with certain positions or pressure (in entrapment)
Dr. Barone’s Approach
Dr. Barone combines a detailed clinical exam with imaging and nerve conduction studies to localize the injury and judge whether the nerve can recover unaided. As a peripheral nerve surgeon and neuroscientist, he draws on both established microsurgical techniques and an active research program in nerve repair and neural interfaces to tailor treatment to each patient.
Treatments Offered
- Nerve decompression for entrapment syndromes
- Direct nerve repair and nerve grafting
- Nerve transfers to restore lost function
- Surgery for painful neuromas
- Management of complex and chronic nerve pain
What to Expect
Your evaluation focuses on identifying which nerve is affected, how severely, and whether intervention will help. Dr. Barone will explain the options, the expected recovery, and how surgery is coordinated with hand or physical therapy. Where watchful waiting is the better choice, that plan is monitored closely so that the surgical window is not missed.
Considering treatment for Peripheral nerve injury?
Dr. Barone evaluates new patients and referrals at Houston Methodist Hospital, Houston. Patients from outside Houston, across the United States, and internationally are welcome.