When a peripheral nerve is damaged or destroyed, the muscles innervated by that nerve immediately become paralyzed, and gradually start wasting away (atrophy).2 Since peripheral nerves carry sensory as well as motor fibres, sensation in the area innervated by the nerve is also lost, along with tendon reflexes.2
References:
1.Hedges V. Chapter 40: Spinal motor control and proprioception. In: Introduction to Neuroscience. Available at: https://openbooks.lib.msu.edu/introneuroscience1. Accessed September 2025.
2.Kandel ER, Koester JD, Mack SH, Siegelbaum SA. Principles of Neural Science, 6th edition. McGraw-Hill Professional; 2021.