Role of Intraoperative Nerve Monitoring in Postoperative Muscle and Nerve Function of Patients Undergoing Modified Radical Mastectomy.

This study aimed to postoperatively evaluate the effects of intraoperative neural monitoring (IONM) on muscles and nerves in patients who underwent modified radical mastectomy (MRM). In the 11 patients included in the study, nerves were determined and protected by nerve monitoring during the axillary dissection (IONM group). In another 11 patients, nerve monitoring was not performed; however, protection of the same nerves was attempted through careful nerve dissection (cautious nerve dissection [CND] group). The control group consisted of 22 healthy subjects. Muscle and nerve functions were blindly evaluated by an experienced physical therapy and rehabilitation specialist using electromyography (EMG) and ultrasonography (US) methods. The EMG values of the pectoralis major muscle were similar in the IONM and control groups (1.97 mV/1.98 mV,