Delayed diagnosis of concomitant rotator cuff tear and brachial plexopathyin a patient with traumatic brain injury: A case report

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is often accompanied by additional trauma that can be obscured by cognitive dysfunction or multiple injuries in the same region of the body. This report describes the case of an unhelmeted motorcy cle rider who collided with a telephone pole. He sustained a diffuse subara chnoid hemorrhage, bilateral subdural hematomas (right frontal and left tem poral), diffuse axonal injury in the subcortical and periventricular white matter, and a left tibial fracture. After medical and surgical stabilizatio n, he was transferred to a subacute rehabilitation facility and then to a r ehabilitation center. He was evaluated for pain and limited range of motion in his right shoulder, where both a rotator cuff tear and a brachial plexo pathy were diagnosed. This report discusses concomitant injuries that occur with TBI, and the management of rotator cuff tears and brachial plexopathy .