The peroneal nerve is most commonly compressed between the leg bone called the fibula and the muscles and ligaments at the lateral edge of the knee. It is characterized by the weakness of the muscles called foot dorsiflexors, which enable the foot to lift above the ankle. The patient has to drag his ankle while walking because he cannot keep it straight. There is also numbness on the foot surface. For this reason, it can sometimes be confused with nerve root compression due to a herniated disc.
Peroneal nerve entrapment; squatting for long periods of time, frequent crossing of legs, leg bone fractures, knee joint dislocations, excessive stretching of the knee due to trauma, nerve damage during surgical procedures, aneurysms (bubbles) in peroneal vessels, bone tumors and joint cysts such as osteochondroma, tight elastic cover. It is caused by reasons such as dressings, bandages, plaster jackets, fiberglass splints, knee stabilizers, leg orthoses, tourniquets and ice pack applications.
In newly developing acute events, motor involvement is more prominent than sensory. In more chronic events such as cysts and tumors, there is pain and slowly progressive motor and sensory disturbances. Electrodiagnostic (EMG) evaluation is necessary for diagnosis and determining the course of the disease. Entrapment; It is seen not only positionally in patients with loss of consciousness, coma or under general anesthesia, but also occupationally when kneeling and bending. The reason for the entrapment that occurs following excessive weight loss is that the nerve becomes sensitive to trauma at the head of the fibula.
While medication and exercise therapy are appropriate in mild cases, physical therapy may be required in some patients. Surgery is required in cases of sudden complete loss of strength and cases that do not improve with physical therapy. The surgery involves cutting open the sheath on the nerve with local anesthesia. Since the nerve will be freed from its compression, first the loss of strength and then the loss of sensation will be corrected. It has been observed that the nerve does not recover even if surgery is performed in patients who have been under pressure for a long time.
Read: 0
