Hello friends,
This post is about damage to spinal accessory nerve.
We know that this nerve in the neck first supplies sternocleidomastoid,then lies on levator scapulae to supply trapezius.
On excision biopsy for matted cervical lymph nodes,we may damage that part of nerve which is lying on levator scapulae.So, this may lead to paralysis of trapezius.
To find this:
Ask the patient to shruggle his shoulder,
To do overhead abduction of arm, and
See for winging of scapula at rest.
On paralysis, there will be difficulty in shruggling his shoulders , difficulty in overhead abduction of arm and winging of scapula at rest.
Winging of scapula is also seen in paralysis of serratus anterior but prominent on movement like pushing the wall, whereas in paralysis of trapezius, it's seen at rest.
Thanks for reading!
Madhuri Reddy (Madhu)