MDNews - Long Island

SPECIALISTS AT STONY BROOK MEDICINE ARE EQUIPPED WITH EX TENSIVE TRAINING AND SOPHISTICATED TECHNOLOGY TO ADDRESS DYSFUNCTION CREATED BY PERIPHERAL NERVE COMPLICATIONS. Stony Brook Medicine: PERIPHER AL NERVE DISORDERS can create a spectrum of complications for patients, causing an array of issues, including weakness, loss of sensation and pain. These disorders commonly occur when a nerve becomes entrapped and endures trauma, which may happen as a result of injury or overuse that causes nerves to become overstretched or severed. "Nerve trauma can happen to anybody, because it may occur as a result of work accidents, car accidents or motorcycle accidents. They can happen at birth or when a newborn, infant or child has an accident," says Courtney Pendleton, MD, Assistant Professor of Neurosurgery at Renaissance School of Medicine at Stony Brook University. "It is pretty universal." Peripheral nerve complications may also occur when nerve tumors develop, which can happen to anyone. However, patients who have certain genetic conditions, such as neurofibromatosis or schwannomatosis, are more likely to experience nerve tumors. In the case of either nerve trauma, tumor or entrapment, neurosurger y specia lists at Stony Brook Medicine, led by Dr. Pendleton, can offer patients a wealth of surgical solutions to address peripheral nerve disorders, restore function and sensation, and enhance overall quality of life. THE IMPORTANCE OF EARLY INTERVENTION While some patients may be tempted to ignore peripheral nerve dysfunction for a period of time, not identifying and treating the issue early may cause irreversible damage. Specifically, if a patient is experiencing weakness in a muscle as a result of peripheral nerve damage, muscle strength will not return until the nerve is fixed. If a patient has a nerve injury that is causing numbness, tingling or burning pain, that discomfort will continue until the pressure on the nerve is relieved or the severed nerve is repaired. "Whether you have a peripheral nerve issue like carpal tunnel or a nerve tumor, addressing it early can be likened to having heavy furniture on carpet," Dr. Pendleton says. "If you have the heavy furniture on the carpet for a day and you move it, the carpet is fine. If you have the heavy furniture on a carpet for a year, it takes a long time for the marks in the carpet to go away. And sometimes they do not, and the nerves are like that. If you fix them right away, there is a better chance that they get better and that they get better completely." SOPHISTICATED DIAGNOSTICS Critical to the successful treatment of peripheral nerve disorders is an accurate diagnosis of the factor causing the complication in each patient. "If someone comes in, and it is unclear if they have a spine issue or something else entirely, they need imaging," Dr. Pendleton says. "It is important to be able to provide that service consistently and in-house … Having that available to us here at Stony Brook BY K ATY MENA-BERKLEY Courtney Pendleton, MD, OFFERS SURGICAL SOLUTIONS FOR PERIPHERAL NERVE DISORDERS 1 6❱❱❱❱❱ P H Y S I C I A N S P O T L I G H T

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