Neonatal Lumbar Plexus Injury

Injuries to the peripheral nervous system seen in the newborn most frequently involve the brachial plexus and the facial nerve.¹ The brachial plexus is usually injured when excessive traction is placed on the shoulder during a difficult delivery. Radial nerve injury has been reported presumably due to compression of the nerve during the birth process. Injury to the peroneal and obturator nerves has been described.² These were attributed to relative fixation of the nerves at the fibular neck in the former case, and to the pubic ramus in the latter, rather than to the traction on the lumbar plexus. To our knowledge, no cases of lumbar plexus injury as a result of traumatic birth have been reported. We describe an infant with lower-extremity weakness due to lumbar plexus injury sustained during rapid breech extraction.

REPORT OF A CASE  A 41/2-month-old male infant had weakness and lack of movement