denervation

thumb|This magnified image of type 2 muscle fibers shows denervation atrophy occurring at the white spaces at the top left and bottom center of the image. The white space represents a disruption of the nerve fibers, resulting in a loss of nerve supply to the muscle fibers. Denervation is any loss of nerve supply regardless of the cause. If the nerves lost to denervation are part of neural communication to an organ system or for a specific tissue function, alterations to or compromise of physiological functioning can occur. Denervation can result from an injury or be a symptom of a disorder like amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), post-polio syndrome, or neuropathic postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS). Intentional denervation is a valuable surgical technique for managing some medical conditions, such as renal denervation in the setting of uncontrolled hypertension. Pathological denervation, by contrast, is associated with serious health sequelae, including increased infection susceptibility and tissue dysfunction.

== Causes == The loss of nerve supply can be caused by injury, disorders, or result from a surgical procedure.