Isolated diaphragm weakness and the diagnostic value of phrenic nerve stimulation

Sarbroop Dhillon; Prarthana Abeyweera; Christopher Kosky; Lisa Harrison; Ashvin Isaac; William Noffsinger; Elaine Pang; Merrilee Needham; Rick Stell; Bhajan Singh

doi:10.1002/rcr2.915

Isolated diaphragm weakness and the diagnostic value of phrenic nerve stimulation

Respirol Case Rep. 2022 Apr 12;10(5):e0915. doi: 10.1002/rcr2.915. eCollection 2022 May.

Authors

Sarbroop Dhillon¹, Prarthana Abeyweera¹, Christopher Kosky^{1

2}, Lisa Harrison¹, Ashvin Isaac¹, William Noffsinger¹, Elaine Pang³, Merrilee Needham^{3

4

5}, Rick Stell³, Bhajan Singh^{1

2

6}

Affiliations

¹ Department of Pulmonary Physiology & Sleep Medicine Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital Nedlands Western Australia Australia.
² West Australian Sleep Disorders Research Institute QE II Medical Centre Nedlands Western Australia Australia.
³ Department of Neurology Fiona Stanley Hospital Perth Western Australia Australia.
⁴ CMMIT Murdoch University Murdoch Western Australia Australia.
⁵ School of Medicine University of Notre Dame Fremantle Western Australia Australia.
⁶ School of Human Sciences University of Western Australia Crawley Western Australia Australia.

Abstract

Acute onset, atraumatic, bilateral diaphragm paralysis due to isolated bilateral phrenic neuropathy is uncommon. Respiratory physicians should be alert to this disorder because it is associated with considerable morbidity and diagnosis is often delayed. These case reports highlight important aspects of the presentation, investigations and management of this disorder.

Keywords: diaphragm; magnetic stimulation; orthopnoea; phrenic nerve.

Publication types

Case Reports