Clinical Outcomes After Whole and Fascicular Sural Nerve Biopsies: A Retrospective Review.

Patrick J Kim, Carolyn Wang, Michael Bonert, Andrew T Chen, Jian-Qiang Lu, Mats Junek, Achilles Thoma, Helene Retrouvey

Abstract read

In one paragraph

Article in Plastic surgery (Oakville, Ont.), 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

0numbers the graph read from it

0cells of the map it votes in

0citing papers in PubMed

–field-weighted citation impact

1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

8 authors.

Patrick J KimDivision of Plastic Surgery, Department of Surgery, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9933-8487

Carolyn WangMichael G. DeGroote School of Medicine, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada.ORCID https://orcid.org/0009-0007-2042-6411

Michael BonertDepartment of Pathology and Molecular Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada.

Andrew T ChenDivision of Plastic Surgery, Department of Surgery, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0396-9960

Jian-Qiang LuMichael G. DeGroote School of Medicine, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1945-5569

Mats JunekDivision of Rheumatology, Department of Medicine, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8416-3955

Achilles ThomaDivision of Plastic Surgery, Department of Surgery, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8348-2863

Helene RetrouveyDivision of Plastic Surgery, Department of Surgery, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5215-0404

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Background: Diagnostic sural nerve biopsies can be taken as whole or fascicular nerve biopsies. It is unclear if this is associated with differences in diagnostic yield or procedural complications. We compared the clinical outcomes of fascicular versus whole sural nerve biopsies. Methods: This was a retrospective chart review of sural nerve biopsies performed between 2011 and 2024 at 4 tertiary academic hospitals in Canada. The primary outcome was the incidence of postoperative nerve-related complications. The secondary outcome was the concordance between the biopsy and the final diagnosis. Fisher's exact test was used to compare the incidence of postoperative complications. Two-sided Cochran-Armitage trend test was used to compare concordance between groups. Results: There were 75 patients who underwent whole sural nerve biopsies and 13 patients who underwent fascicular sural nerve biopsies; 54.6% of patients were male, with a mean age of 59.7 ± 15.9. The average nerve length sampled was 2.86 ± 1.3 cm in the whole nerve biopsy group and 2.35 ± 1.3 cm in the fascicular nerve biopsy group. Only a small proportion of patients had documented follow-up (whole: 26.7%; fascicular: 15.4%), among whom 40.0% in the whole nerve biopsy group and 0.0% in the fascicular group experienced complications ( Conclusion: Fascicular and whole sural nerve biopsies demonstrated similar diagnostic concordance. Prospective studies with larger sample sizes are needed to more accurately characterize postoperative complication rates.

Indexed as

diagnostic techniques and proceduresdonor site morbiditynerve biopsyperipheral nervous system diseasesRetrospective studiessural nervevasculitis

Identifiers

PMID42368629

DOI10.1177/22925503261461586

PMCPMC13303256

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata

LicenceCC BY-NC

Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.