Regional anesthesia and pain medicine
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Reg Anesth Pain Med · Oct 2020
ReviewDaring discourse: are we ready to recommend neuraxial anesthesia and peripheral nerve blocks during the COVID-19 pandemic? A pro-con.
The recent joint statement from the American Society of Regional Anesthesia and Pain Medicine (ASRA) and the European Society of Regional Anesthesia and Pain Therapy (ESRA) recommends neuraxial and peripheral nerve blocks for patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-2019) illness. The benefits of regional anesthetic and analgesic techniques on patient outcomes and healthcare systems are evident. Regional techniques are now additionally promoted as a mechanism to reduce aerosolizing procedures. ⋯ In this Daring Discourse, we present two opposing perspectives on adopting the ASRA/ESRA recommendation. Areas of controversy in the literature and opportunities for research to address knowledge gaps are highlighted. We hope this will stimulate dialogue and research into the optimal techniques to improve patient outcomes and ensure practitioner safety during the pandemic.
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Reg Anesth Pain Med · Oct 2020
Randomized Controlled TrialEffect of low-dose lidocaine on objective upper extremity strength and immediate pain relief following cervical interlaminar epidural injections: a double-blinded randomized controlled trial.
Low-dose lidocaine is a common diluent for analgesia following cervical interlaminar epidural steroid injection (CIESI). Concerns with this practice exist. A single-arm cohort reported that 20% of patients develop postprocedural upper extremity weakness when using lidocaine as a diluent. Furthermore, a high-cervical spinal block with unintended intrathecal or subdural administration is possible. ⋯ Low-dose lidocaine as a diluent in CIESI does not significantly increase the risk of post-CIESI myotomal weakness when compared with saline, but also does not substantially increase the likelihood of immediate, meaningful pain relief.
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Reg Anesth Pain Med · Oct 2020
Analgesic efficacy of adding the IPACK block to a multimodal analgesia protocol for primary total knee arthroplasty.
Peripheral nerve blocks have been integrated into most multimodal analgesia protocols for total knee arthroplasty (TKA). The adductor canal block (ACB) has gained popularity because of its quadriceps muscle sparing. Similarly, local anesthetic injection between the popliteal artery and the posterior capsule of the knee, IPACK block, has been described to provide analgesia to the posterior capsule of the knee with motor-sparing qualities. This prospective randomized controlled trial aimed to assess the analgesic efficacy of adding the IPACK block to our current multimodal analgesic regimen, including the ACB, in patients undergoing primary TKA. ⋯ The IPACK block reduced the incidence of posterior knee pain 6 hours postoperatively.