Pathological Findings of Hourglass-Like Constriction in Spontaneous Posterior Interosseous Nerve Palsy

Abstract

We report the pathological findings of hourglass-like fascicular constriction (HLFC) under optical and electron microscopy. A 24-year-old man with spontaneous posterior interosseous nerve palsy was treated by interfascicular neurolysis at 29 weeks after onset. One fascicle in the radial nerve presented severe HLFC with torsion at 5 cm proximal to the elbow. Functional recovery was achieved by resection of the enlarged fascicle including HLFC and sural nerve grafting. Proximal to the HLFC, the endoneurium was filled with clusters of regenerating nerve fibers. At the level of the HLFC, a complete loss of myelinated nerve fibers and vascular occlusion of endo- and perineurial vessels were found. Few regenerating nerve fibers were observed. Distal to the HLFC, severe endoneurial edema, a complete loss of myelinated and unmyelinated nerve fibers, and bands of Büngner were noted. These electron microscopic findings demonstrated a detailed pathology of the nerve around the HLFC.