Thank you for your interest and support of The Brachial Plexus Palsy Foundation.

We are a non-profit organization designed to raise funds for activities in support of families with children who have suffered brachial plexus injuries.

Enclosed in this website is a description of a brachial plexus injury and other information to better educate families who do not have the time or resources.

Along with providing families across the world with a package of information, we also provide information on the Internet through this site. The site describes, in detail, what a brachial plexus injury is, how it is treated and what kinds of therapy are involved. We have provided information via the world wide web for people all over the world, every day.

The BPPF has and will continue to provide funds, for medical facilities that conduct research and studies in search of a cure, and to better treat brachial plexus injuries in children and adults.

The foundation was started to help continue the research and education of Brachial Plexus injuries in infants and children. It is a lifelong disability that requires rehabilitation and possible surgery.

A Brachial Plexus Injury is a nerve injury. The nerves that are damaged control muscles in the shoulders, arm or hand. Any or all of these muscles may be paralyzed.

Here are some examples:
- no muscle control and no feeling in the arm or hand.
- can move arms but have little control over wrist and hand.
- use of hands but no use of shoulder or elbow muscles.
- most severe cases an entire arm is paralyzed and hand and fingers hang limp.
- facial paralysis on affected side.
- inability to sit up without assistance.
- inability to crawl without therapeutic devices.

It is a network of nerves. It conducts signals from the spine to the arm and hand. These signals cause the arm and hand muscles to move.

Most injuries occur during birth while moving through the birth canal. The baby's neck and shoulders may be stretched too far apart, damaging or tearing nerves. The stretching or damage may be caused by forceps delivery in large babies. However, newborns of all sizes, including premature babies can have these injuries.

Avulsion - the nerve is torn from the spine.
Rupture - the nerve is torn, but not where it attaches to the spine.
Neuroma - the nerve has tried to heal itself, but scar tissue has grown.

1 in 1000 births suffer Down Syndrome.
2 or 3 per 1000 births suffer Cerebral Palsy.
1 per 3500 boys suffer Muscular Dystrophy.
1 in 1000 births suffer from Spina Bifida.
3 in 1000 births suffer Brachial Plexus Palsy.

280,000 infants are born with serious disabilities each year.

The Brachial Plexus clinic at Texas Children's Hospital in Houston, TX evaluates and plans treatment for children who have had Brachial Plexus injuries.
Surgery includes:
- Scraping of Neuroma (neurolysis)
- Nerve Grafts - nerves are transplanted to reconnect damaged nerve or nerves.
The clinic continues to research the methods to treat BPP to fully understand every aspect of the injury.

Treatment cannot promise a child will ever have normal use of an affected hand, but the realistic goal is partial use of an affected arm or hand.
- bringing affected hand to mouth for feeding.
- use affected arm or hand to help other arm lift and carry objects.

We appreciate your contribution to this foundation. The education and continuing research of this disabling injury needs to be sustained. We feel it is important to give the medical community and parents the knowledge that these injuries exist and that there is help.

The loss of feeling or the simplest God-given skills such as muscle control in an infant's arm and hand can affect families for an entire lifetime. Let's keep the faith alive that these injuries can be overcome and that these children can lead productive lives.