Courses of the Radial Nerve Differ Between Chinese and Caucasians

Abstract

We analyzed anatomic distribution of the radial nerve in the upper arms in Chinese-adult embalmed cadavers (120 nerves in 60 cadavers) and compared it with findings reported for Caucasian adults. The acromion, the medial epicondyle, and the lateral epicondyle were used as bony landmarks. We used previously described techniques to quantitatively describe the location of the radial nerve in relation to the surrounding skeleton. Courses of the radial nerve relative to the humeral shaft in Chinese subjects differed from those previously reported for Caucasian subjects. The parameters that differed from Caucasians were: the distances from the acromion to the upper margin (147 ± 21 mm versus 124 ± 12 mm), the acromion to the lower margin (195 ± 36 mm versus 176 ± 17 mm), and the medial epicondyle to the lower margin (111 ± 21 mm versus 131 ± 10 mm). Our study provides information to help identify the radial nerve during surgery and elucidates racial differences in the distribution of the radial nerve between Chinese and Caucasian populations.

Free Muscle Transfer in Posttraumatic Plexopathies Part II: The Elbow

“…Differences in limb length [10] and weight between our group (Caucasian) and Oriental patients were previously recognized [35,36].…”

A Method to Localize The Radial Nerve Using the ‘Apex Of Triceps Aponeurosis’ as a Landmark

“…Knowledge of the location of the radial nerve during the posterior approach to the humerus, and its relationship with a consistent and reliable anatomic landmark, are major concerns for treating surgeons. Another anatomic landmark is needed to consistently and reliably allow the surgeon to locate the radial nerve during this approach, as described relationships [1,[3][4][5][6][7][12][13][14] of the radial nerve with various osseous landmarks rarely hold true in the clinical setting. Therefore, we compared the distance of the radial nerve from the apex of the triceps aponeurosis among cadavers (having an intact humerus) and patients treated with open reduction and internal fixation for distal third humerus fractures.…”

“…First, our subjects were all inhabitants of the Indian subcontinent. The measurements may differ slightly among patients of different race and ethnicity, as Chou et al [6] reported the courses of the radial nerve differ between Chinese and Caucasians subjects. Future studies may evaluate such relationships in patients of other ethnicities.…”

“…Nevertheless, we describe the relationship of the radial nerve with a proposed soft tissue landmark. Numerous anatomic studies have attempted to establish the relationship of the radial nerve with bony points (lateral epicondyle, medial epicondyle, and angle of acromion) [1,[3][4][5][6][7][12][13][14]. In an anatomic study, Guse and Ostrum [14] reported that the proximal extent of the radial nerve in the spiral groove was 18.1 cm (± 1.1 cm) proximal to the medial epicondyle, whereas the distal extent of the radial nerve in the spiral groove was 12.6 cm (± 1.1 cm) proximal to the lateral epicondyle of the humerus.…”

“…Some studies have established the anatomic relationship of the radial nerve with various bony landmarks, such as the lateral epicondyle, medial epicondyle, or angle of the acromion [1,[3][4][5][6][7][12][13][14]. Based on cadaveric dissections, these studies show the distance of the lateral epicondyle from the point where the radial nerve leaves the spiral groove distally ranges from 6 cm to 16 cm, whereas the distance of the angle of the acromion from the point where the radial nerve enters the spiral groove ranges from 10 cm to 19 cm.…”