An uncommon cause of brachial plexus injury

Abstract

We report a case of left upper trunk neuropraxia following an uneventful case of lumbar spine fixation and fusion performed in the prone position. The cause of the injury was believed to be a very tight endotracheal tube tie in addition to the patient’s head turned to one side; both caused a compression in the left supraclavicular region compressing the upper trunk of the brachial plexus. On literature review, there are limited reports of endotracheal tube tie causing upper trunk brachial plexus reported in the English literature. Attention and care needs to be exercised to avoid this largely preventable complication.