Regional anesthesia and pain medicine
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Reg Anesth Pain Med · Nov 2007
Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative StudyPostoperative epidural analgesia after total knee arthroplasty with sufentanil 1 microg/ml combined with ropivacaine 0.2%, ropivacaine 0.125%, or levobupivacaine 0.125%: a randomized, double-blind comparison.
Total knee replacement is associated with severe postoperative pain that, if treated insufficiently, interferes with early rehabilitation. The purpose of the present study is to compare the efficacy of ropivacaine (0.2% and 0.125%) and levobupivacaine (0.125%), all in combination with sufentanil 1 microg/mL with regard to postoperative pain relief and absence of motor block in a patient-controlled epidural analgesia setting. ⋯ All 3 solutions provided adequate analgesia and minimal motor block. The higher concentration of ropivacaine 0.2% was associated with a higher consumption of local anesthetic and did not result in a decrease in the consumption of sufentanil. Under the conditions of this study, patient-controlled epidural analgesia consumption of the epidural mixture was predominantly determined by sufentanil.
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Reg Anesth Pain Med · Nov 2007
Multicenter StudyFactors predicting success and failure for cervical facet radiofrequency denervation: a multi-center analysis.
The concept of radiofrequency denervation has recently come under question in light of several studies showing minimal to no benefit. One possibility proposed for these negative outcomes is poor selection criteria. Unlike virtually all other spine interventions, the factors associated with success and failure for cervical facet denervation have yet to be determined. The purpose of this study is to determine which demographic, clinical and treatment factors are associated with cervical facet radiofrequency denervation outcomes. ⋯ Selecting patients based on key clinical variables may increase the chance of treatment success for cervical facet radiofrequency denervation.
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Reg Anesth Pain Med · Nov 2007
Case ReportsStimulating catheter as a tool to evaluate peripheral nerve function during hip rotationplasty.
Stimulating catheters have been introduced into clinical practice to confirm perineural localization of the catheters. The muscular twitch induced over the catheter may be used to evaluate nerve function intraoperatively. Therefore, the function of the sciatic nerve was evaluated during major cancer surgery of the femur. ⋯ The use of epidural stimulating catheters as a tool to monitor nerve function is a novel and simple procedure to monitor nerve function intraoperatively and to enable good postoperative pain control.