Regional anesthesia and pain medicine
-
Reg Anesth Pain Med · Jan 2008
Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative StudyEffect of a continuous peripheral nerve block on the inflammatory response in knee arthroplasty.
Experimental nerve block in animals inhibits the inflammatory response. The purpose of this study was to determine to what extent a 48-hour local anesthetic block of all afferent and efferent nerve fibers of the knee area has an impact on postoperative inflammatory response. ⋯ Continuous lumbar plexus and sciatic nerve blocks with ropivacaine contribute to the attenuation of the postoperative inflammatory response.
-
Reg Anesth Pain Med · Jan 2008
Randomized Controlled TrialEffect of preemptive epidural analgesia on cytokine response and postoperative pain in laparoscopic radical hysterectomy for cervical cancer.
Surgical stress and general anesthesia suppress immune function. Preemptive epidural analgesia can affect the perioperative immune responses, and influence cancer management. ⋯ Preemptive epidural analgesia is a reasonable approach for potentially controlling perioperative immune function and preventing postoperative pain in patients undergoing cancer surgery.
-
Reg Anesth Pain Med · Jan 2008
Randomized Controlled TrialUse of a topical anesthetic cream (EMLA) to reduce pain after hemorrhoidectomy.
Hemorrhoidectomy usually leads to severe postoperative pain that often causes urinary retention. Topical EMLA cream (lidocaine 2.5% and prilocaine 2.5%) has been used extensively in the clinical setting. This prospective study tested the effectiveness of EMLA cream for postoperative pain control after hemorrhoidectomy. ⋯ Topical EMLA cream decreased pain intensity and meperidine requests, reduced the frequency of single catheterizations, and improved patient satisfaction with postoperative pain management after hemorrhoidectomy in adults.
-
Reg Anesth Pain Med · Jan 2008
Comparative StudyEthnicity and the distance to the epidural space in parturients.
In a pilot study, we previously demonstrated a higher average skin to lumbar epidural space distance (STLESD) in our obstetric population compared with the published literature. Furthermore, we demonstrated differences in STLESD based on ethnicity. The aim of this study was to perform a comprehensive analysis of the STLESD in our patient population by expanding the number of patients and ethnic groups included. ⋯ In this study we found that the STLESD was deeper than what was previously reported in the literature. Furthermore, ethnicity, in addition to BMI, influenced the STLESD.