The brachial plexus is the network of nerves that sends signals from your spinal cord to your shoulder, arm and hand. These nerves control and administer feelings in the muscles of the shoulder, elbow, wrist, hand, and arm. This damage is also known as brachial plexopathy. A brachial plexus injury occurs when these nerves are stretched, compressed, or in the most serious cases, ripped apart or torn away from the spinal cord.

Nerve grafting is a procedure in which a healthy nerve taken from another part of the body is sewn in between the two ends of a lacerated nerve. The transplanted nerve acts as a scaffold to support the injured ends as they regenerate and grow back together. Nerve grafting can only be performed if there is a functioning nerve stump at the spinal cord to conduct a nerve signal. The goal is for the transplanted nerve to guide nerve regrowth and to ultimately restore nerve signals to power the paralyzed muscle.