Guidelines to support home stretching recommendations for babies with brachial plexus birth injury
What is it about?
Infants who are born with a brachial plexus birth injury are at risk for weakness in one arm, and are also at risk for developing tight shoulders that are hard to move. Medical professionals often recommend frequent daily stretching of the injured arm to decrease the risk of tightness developing. This article explores how often daily stretching needs to be performed to reduce the risk of developing a tight shoulder, and identifies factors that make it easier or harder for parents to adhere to daily stretching recommendations.
Why is it important?
Our findings show that daily stretching should be started as soon as possible after birth in order to decrease the risk of developing a tight shoulder. We provide recommendations to make daily stretching easier for parents to do such as stretching during a daily routine such as when the infant is eating or during diaper changes.