Ulnar Neuropathy - Pathophysiology

Pathophysiology

The nerve, axon, and myelin can be affected. Within the axon, fascicles to individual muscles may be involved selectively. Axonal involvement leads to motor unit loss and amplitude/area reduction. Conduction block implies impaired transmission through a segment of nerve. In the absence of changes indicating axonal damage, conduction block implies myelin damage to the involved segment. Significant slowing of conduction and/or significant spreading out of the temporal profile of the recorded response (i.e., abnormal temporal dispersion) with preserved axonal integrity suggests demyelination.