when a nerve to the hand has been severed...?

Question

and the hand loses function/feelings... after the nerve has been surgically reattached and the long process takes place for the nerve regenerate.... when the nerve grows into the hand would the muscles that were previously commonly used through memory pick up from where it has left? for example, writing, holding a spoon, playing an instrument, etc

Answer 1

YES! I sustained an injury about 6 years ago that severed every vein, nerve, muscle, and tendon except for the main, central vein in my left wrist - right at the base or palm of my hand. Over 300 stitches and 8 hours of microscopic surgery, the Dr was pretty sure that I would have very limited mobility and feeling in 3 of my fingers, my palm, wrist and thumb. I like to write, paint and draw....I refused to accept this. I exercised my fingers, hand & wrist/lower arm as much as I could (very painfully) tolerate every day after surgery and as many times during the day that I could. I also was faithful with my physical therapy visits and exercises (sometimes I thought I overdid it because it was painful). Today, I have complete use of my entire left hand & fingers, wrist & arm included. The nerve endings can get hyper sensitive, but with some exercise/therapy it always returns to normal. Unless people see the scars, they never know I almost lost my hand. Good Luck to you & Never Give Up - no matter what the Dr says!

Answer 2

Stick with what IS, not what MIGHT happen. If you want your hand to function really well then you are going to have to do it yourself. Nothing is impossible to the person who is truly determined. You want your hand back, then fight, scratch, claw but never give up until you have it. That is how I am made. I overcame an horrendous injury to my right shoulder. The surgeons told me it was unrepairable, it was so bad. I went home very depressed, but by the time I got home I picked up a 35 lb dumbbell and pumped it 10 times with the damaged shoulder shouting "No" with every repetition and slammed the dumbbell down. I found a man who could feel through the skin and move everything back the way it was supposed to be. He did that, commented on my pain threshhold, and put me in a sling for thirty days so the shoulder would heal right. When I got out of the sling all my tendons had shortened dramatically. My shoulder was locked up. I unlocked the shoulder myself.
Anyway, it took two entire years from that point to get use of my shoulder back. It was never the same but good enough. I found I could only do one rep with a 200 lb bench press. Well, I permanently lost my former strength. I went back the doctors who told me I would never use my arm again. I heard, "The difference between you and most people, is that they are content and you are intent." Another marvelled and told me that he could never do all I had to do to come back. They viewed it as an impossible task, but that through shear will power, I had overcome. If I can do it, anyone else can to. It is a decision.

Answer 3

It is very unlikely that you would have full functionality again. You might come close, but there would always be a "hitch". But the good thing is that with persistance, you can train your muscles to overcome this, and do all those things that you used to, but maybe in a slightly different way.

Answer 4

in my case the function came back but not the sensitivity and most of the feeling