Regional anesthesia and pain medicine
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Reg Anesth Pain Med · Jan 2019
"Pseudo-suprascapular notch": is it a sonographic trap in suprascapular nerve block?
The aim of the study was to describe the radiological anatomy of the pseudo-suprascapular notch-a structure localized at the floor of the supraspinatus fossa, just below the true suprascapular notch. In sonographic examination, it may imitate the suprascapular notch leading to misidentification of these structures. ⋯ The pseudo-suprascapular notch is a hollow for nutrient vessels that can be mistaken for the regular suprascapular notch in cases of difficult sonographic navigation.
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Reg Anesth Pain Med · Jan 2019
Clinical TrialSelf-reported cumulative medical opioid exposure and subjective responses on first use of opioids predict analgesic and subjective responses to placebo-controlled opioid administration.
To expand the evidence base needed to enable personalized pain medicine, we evaluated whether self-reported cumulative exposure to medical opioids and subjective responses on first opioid use predicted responses to placebo-controlled opioid administration. ⋯ Self-reports of past exposure and responses to medical opioid analgesics may have utility for predicting subsequent analgesic responses and subjective effects. Further research is needed to establish the potential clinical and research utility of the HOME.
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Reg Anesth Pain Med · Jan 2019
ReviewGadolinium use for interventional pain procedures: where we are and where we are heading.
In recent years as the use of interventional pain procedures has soared, so too has outside and internal scrutiny. This scrutiny includes agreater emphasis on weighing the risks and benefits of procedures, increased surveillance for adverse events, and cost containment strategies. ⋯ In this issue of Regional Anesthesia & Pain Medicine, Benzon et al. report a series of patients with document edhypersensitivity reactions to iodinated contrast medium who were inadvertently administered iodine-based contrast without adverse consequences. In this article, we discuss the epidemiology of contrast-mediated adverse effects, the mechanistic basis for hypersensitivity reactions, the risks and benefits of various approaches in the patient with a documented contrast hypersensitivity reaction, and risk mitigation strategies.
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Reg Anesth Pain Med · Jan 2019
ReviewImproving the therapeutic window of conventional opioids: novel differential signaling modulators.
Conventional opioids are widely used for acute pain management in the postoperative setting. However, a primary concern with conventional opioids is their therapeutic window-the range between doses that produce the desired therapeutic effect (analgesia) and doses that produce unwanted opioid-related adverse events (ORAEs). Conventional µ receptor opioids have a narrow therapeutic window in part because of their mechanism of action (MoA): they bind to µ receptors and non-selectively activate two intracellular signaling pathways, leading to analgesia and to ORAEs. ⋯ Agents with a 'differential signaling" MoA represent an innovative approach that may enhance the therapeutic window. These agents modulate µ receptor activity to selectively engage downstream signaling pathways associated with analgesia while limiting activity in downstream signaling pathways that lead to ORAEs. Differential signaling may fulfill an unmet need in the management of postoperative pain.