ArticleCureus2026
Congenital Anatomical Variations of the Posterior Cord of the Brachial Plexus in Human Fetuses: Branching Patterns and Surgical Implications.
Article in Cureus, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.
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.
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.
Who cites it
0 citing papers in PubMed.
No citing paper in PubMed yet.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
7 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundThe posterior cord of the brachial plexus, formed by the posterior divisions of the upper, middle, and lower trunks (C5-T1), gives rise to the upper subscapular, thoracodorsal, lower subscapular, and axillary nerves and continues as the radial nerve. Variations in its formation and branching are clinically important for regional anesthesia (infraclavicular and axillary blocks), axillary surgery, and nerve-transfer procedures in brachial plexus palsy. Fetal dissection can reveal congenital patterns before postnatal or post-mortem distortion.
objectiveThe single combined objective was split into two discrete, explicitly stated aims: (i) to document the prevalence and morphological types of variation in posterior cord formation and branching; and (ii) to test associations of these variations with gestational age, fetal sex, and side. MATERIALS AND
methodsTwenty-three formalin-preserved aborted human fetuses (gestational age 20-40 weeks; 46 upper limbs) were dissected bilaterally in the Department of Anatomy, SMBT Institute of Medical Sciences and Research Centre, Nashik, India. The pectoral, axillary, and arm regions were exposed to trace the roots, trunks, divisions, posterior cord, and its branches. Variations were classified by root contribution, posterior cord formation, and branching pattern. Associations with gestational age, fetal sex, and side were tested using the chi-square and Fisher's exact tests (IBM SPSS Statistics for Windows, Version 25 (Released 2017; IBM Corp., Armonk, New York, United States); P<0.05 considered significant); odds ratios (ORs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated where appropriate.
resultsPosterior cord variations were present in 28 of 46 limbs (60.87%). The classical three-posterior-division pattern was seen in 37 limbs (80.43%), whereas variant formations (one, two, three (united distally), or four posterior divisions) occurred in nine limbs (19.57%). Prefixed roots (C4-T1 or C3-T1) were present in six limbs (13.04%). Branching was classical in 21 limbs (45.65%); the commonest anomaly was a common trunk for the axillary and lower subscapular nerves (10 limbs, 21.74%). Variations were significantly more frequent on the right side (18/23, 78.26%) than the left (10/23, 43.48%; χ
conclusionsThe posterior cord shows substantial congenital variability in human fetuses, with a right-sided predominance. Awareness of these patterns may inform surgical planning, neurotization, and regional anesthesia, with the potential to reduce the risks of incomplete blockade and iatrogenic nerve injury.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
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.