intraneural

Intraneural is an adjective used in anatomy and medicine to describe something located within a nerve. In anatomical terms, it refers to structures or processes that reside inside the nerve’s connective tissue coverings, most often within the endoneurium and, at a higher level, the perineurium. This contrasts with extraneural findings, which lie outside the nerve.

In clinical practice, intraneural may describe procedures, lesions, or pathological processes. Intraneural injections occur when a needle or catheter breaches the nerve sheath during regional anesthesia or pain management. If the injection occurs intrafascicularly, within a nerve fascicle, it poses a higher risk of lasting nerve injury compared with extrafascicular injection. Intraneural pathology can also include lesions such as intraneural ganglion cysts, schwannomas or neurofibromas that arise within the nerve sheath, and inflammatory or edematous changes confined to the nerve.

Diagnostics typically rely on imaging such as ultrasound and magnetic resonance imaging, sometimes complemented by electrodiagnostic testing to assess nerve function. Management is condition-specific. Intraneural cysts or tumors may require surgical management with nerve-sparing techniques, while injections are ideally avoided or carefully controlled to prevent intraneural placement. The term highlights a sub-location within the nerve rather than around it, informing both diagnosis and treatment considerations.