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Dr. Andrew Rynne
MD
Dr. Andrew Rynne

Family Physician

Exp 50 years

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Can Lung Paralysis Be Caused By Phrenic Nerve Injury Be Cured?

My husband who is a veteran , has had a veteran Pulmonologist , (after giving him tests), determine his breathing difficulty (after left shoulder repair ) was due to an injury to the phrenic nerve during the surgery . His tests have shown that his left lung is paralyzed. What can be done? They say this can not be fixed. Help!. The quality of our lives has been dramatically reduced . FOREVER?
Wed, 21 Jan 2015
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Pulmonologist,  's  Response
Thanks for your question on HCM.
I can understand your situation and problem.
Sorry to say but phrenic nerve once damaged can not repaired. Phrenic nerve supplies diaphragm. It is one of the strongest muscle for respiration.
At the same time it is not the only muscle for respiration. You can make other respiratory muscles (other than diaphragm) more stronger by
1. Deep breathing exercise
2. Chest physiotherapy
3. Incentive spirometry.
So by above things you can overcome diaphragm function by other respiratory muscles.
These all will improve your lung functions and quality of life.
You can record improvement in lung functions by regular PFT (pulmonary function test).
So consult pulmonologist and discuss all these.
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Can Lung Paralysis Be Caused By Phrenic Nerve Injury Be Cured?

Thanks for your question on HCM. I can understand your situation and problem. Sorry to say but phrenic nerve once damaged can not repaired. Phrenic nerve supplies diaphragm. It is one of the strongest muscle for respiration. At the same time it is not the only muscle for respiration. You can make other respiratory muscles (other than diaphragm) more stronger by 1. Deep breathing exercise 2. Chest physiotherapy 3. Incentive spirometry. So by above things you can overcome diaphragm function by other respiratory muscles. These all will improve your lung functions and quality of life. You can record improvement in lung functions by regular PFT (pulmonary function test). So consult pulmonologist and discuss all these.