Christopher EllisCEO Dynamic Physio Therapy

Axonotmesis: Nerve Injury Explained | Regeneration & Healing #shorts

24 Sept 2026 · 1 min

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In this concise educational short, Christopher Ellis explains the nerve injury class called axonotmesis. He describes the basic anatomy of a nerve—cell bodies at each end connected by a long axonal tube. Axonotmesis occurs when the axon itself is damaged while the surrounding connective tissue sheaths remain intact. Because the distal portion of the axon can no longer survive, it undergoes Wallerian degeneration, a process of cellular cleanup where the damaged segment shrivels and dies, clearing the way for subsequent regrowth of the nerve.

Chapters

The next class is the axonotmesis. So nerves have what are called axons. You get the cell body of a nerve. So you got a cell body on either side and then a long tube between the two. That is the axon. Now, in axonotmesis, the axon itself has been injured and has been disrupted. However, all the connective tissues that surround the nerve are intact. So, This one, that matters because the portion of the axon downstream from injury can't really survive. So you get something called Wallerian degeneration. So what that means is essentially cellular cleanup. So after the area where the axon has been damaged, the rest of it will sort of shrivel away and die and make room for new growth.