My husband (28 year old) went in for a lipoma removal surgery last Wednesday (8/17/11). The lipoma was on his upper right arm, medial aspect. It was performed at an outpatient surgery center and he was given Versed and local anesthesia. The surgeon removed it (along with 4 others in other locations) and said that it was very superficial so he had no problems with it. However, since the surgery, he has had problems in his arm. Here are his symptoms:
1) His whole arm was numb/tingling
2) He lost strength in his arm, particularly his bicep muscle. It is very weak when he tries to flex his biceps and bend his elbow up.
3) He has fasciculations when he tries to perform fine movements. Like when he tries to hold an object still, his muscle twitches.
4) He lost muscle tone in his biceps.
5) He lost dexterity.
It has improved slightly since then. For example, his whole hand is not numb anymore, only his thumb and pointer finger. However, his muscle is still weak and he still has not fully regained his dexterity. When he flexes his arms up, it is apparent that his right arm has lost muscle tone because you can't see the muscle flex. He is weak when he tries to flex his elbows. He has no problems raising his arms above his head. Otherwise, his muscle fatigues very easily. It seems like his muscles in his forearm is attempting to compensate for the loss of strength in his biceps because he says that he can feel that muscle burning, like he is overusing it.
From what I have read on the internet, it sounds like damage to the musculocutaneous nerve. Could it have been positioning during surgery that could have caused damage to the nerve? If it is damage, what are the chances that he will make a full recovery? He has an appointment with a neurologist on September 15 but I just wanted some answers now so he can stop worrying so much about it.
Is there anyone else out there that has experienced something like this? We would just like to know how your recovery went. Thanks!