Regional anesthesia and pain medicine
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Reg Anesth Pain Med · May 2009
Implications of a permanent cardiac pacemaker in peripheral nerve blockade.
Patients with permanent cardiac pacemakers (PPMs) are vulnerable to electromagnetic interference from electrical equipment used in the operating room environment. Electromagnetic interference may lead to PPM malfunction with potential harmful effects to the patient. ⋯ The hazards of NS, especially when applied near the implanted PPM sites, are not known. In the absence of available guidelines regarding the safe use of NS in the setting of an implanted PPM, we recommend a combined guidance approach for peripheral nerve blockade using ultrasound for nerve localization along with low-current NS for nerve identification.
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Reg Anesth Pain Med · May 2009
Ultrasound of the lateral femoral cutaneous nerve: normal findings in a cadaver and in volunteers.
To assess the feasibility of ultrasound (US) in visualizing the lateral femoral cutaneous nerve (LFCN) in a cadaver and 8 volunteers. ⋯ Ultrasound enables visualization of the LFCN in a cadaver and in volunteers. Ultrasound-guided injection successfully blocked the LFCN.
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Reg Anesth Pain Med · May 2009
Comparative StudySpinal procaine is less neurotoxic than mepivacaine, prilocaine and bupivacaine in rats.
Lidocaine has been reported to be more neurotoxic than other local anesthetics. Alternatives to lidocaine with lower toxicity and shorter duration of action are desirable. Therefore, we compared the histologic and functional changes induced by intrathecal injection of prilocaine, mepivacaine, procaine, and bupivacaine in rats. ⋯ In this animal model, the neurotoxicity of intrathecal procaine was the mildest, and the recovery time to ambulation with procaine was the fastest among the 4 tested anesthetics.