United Brachial Plexus Network

Hallo there everyone. My son Wasi is about five weeks old now . He is receiving Physiotherapy since he was 7 days old. Recently I was talking with a new Physiotherapist he suggested that we should start Electric Stimulation of nerve by using some machine through Pshyiotherapy. I asked him is it suitable for children . He told me he has used this one with many child with BPI and gets good response. I am wondering if any one of you is familiar with this ? What is the opinion of your Doctor/ Physiotherapist on this ? Shall appreciate participation from all.

Munam

Hi Munam...

www.injurednewborn.com/maia/estim.html

there's a bunch of info on there...

we were told by our brachial plexus specialist that e-stim is contraindicated under the age of two because it may damage the bone growth plates (this is referring to NMES and FES - the kind of e-stim that causes muscle contraction - which is the kind that's done in a physiotherapist's office)

There is one type of estim that is being used on younger children - but I don't think it's being used on anyone under one - I may be wrong - it is called TES nighttime e-stim. I have written about this on that page as well. Maia does this at night. It does not cause muscle contraction - just brings more circulation to the area and it's specifically used at night so that it gets growth hormones circulating as well.

You need to ask a brachial plexus specialist about this however. Also - there is more information on TES on www.tascnetwork.net.

In my mind - and don't forget that I am NOT a medical professional (just a bodywork therapist) - I would think that any kind of vibration like this given at such an early age might disrupt the nerve growth. I saw a video of nerves growing in a petri dish - it was very interesting...but they work very hard growing and they move all around and it's not a straight kind of thing - do you know what I mean - it's like fingers and branches all over the place just running trying to meet at the other end... I my mind - I do think stimulation of such a strong nature would not give a positive result..... but don't listen to me...research it and let us know what you find out.

Energetic stimulation can come from acupuncture - it might help clear the pathways and it might also help with some pain but it's still not going to repair the damage of a ruptured or avulsed nerve. There are NO alternatives that will repair a ruptured or avulsed nerve.

Blessings to Wasi,
francine

Wow, such a little one. I didn't realize your baby was so young. You're really doing your research and staying on top of things. I was told the same thing as Francine about using estim at such a young age, but keep in mind that we also see the same BP Specialist (just wanted to clarify that for you). I personally would be hesitant to use any kind of estim on a baby so young, but that is me. I know you're not going to jump into a rush decision and that is good that you're doing your own research before starting anything. I would say that I think 5 weeks is very young to do much more than ROM and other little movement or sensory stimulation things that a PT (or OT) shows you. Remember that most BPIs recover fully (or near fully b/c I don't really believe the "fully" term, which is another whole discussion) within the first 2 months. Does your baby have any movement yet? I was even hesitant to start TES (nighttime estim) until after Nicole turned 2 y.o. I think it has been beneficial to her, although I can't totally isolate what has contributed to different improvements, but if I were to go back in time I still would not have started it any sooner than 2 yrs. Best wishes to you in your decision. It took lots of prayer to come to our decision regarding the use of TES. Right now we're on a 4-month break b/c Nicole is wearing a post-op splint. I hope this helps. Take care. -Tina