Regional anesthesia and pain medicine
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Reg Anesth Pain Med · Jan 2012
Comparative StudyOptical detection of vascular penetration during nerve blocks: an in vivo human study.
Complications resulting from vascular penetration during nerve blocks are rare but potentially devastating events that can occur despite meticulous technique. In this in vivo human pilot study, we investigated the potential for detecting vascular penetration with optical reflectance spectroscopy during blocks of the sympathetic chain and the communicating ramus at lumbar levels. ⋯ The results from this study suggest that optical spectroscopy has the potential to detect intravascular needle placement, which may in turn increase the safety of nerve blocks.
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Reg Anesth Pain Med · Jan 2012
American Society of Regional Anesthesia and Pain Medicine 2010 Gaston Labat Lecture: Perineural catheter analgesia as a routine method after ambulatory surgery--effective but unrealistic.
Adequate postoperative analgesia is a prerequisite for successful ambulatory surgery and remains a challenge. The problem of pain at home may be increasing because previously inpatient surgical procedures are becoming ambulatory and it is expected that the number and complexity of ambulatory surgical procedures will continue to increase. In 1998, we described the use of surgical-site and perineural catheter techniques that allowed patients to self-administer local anesthetics through disposable, elastomeric pumps for pain management at home. ⋯ Surgical-site catheter technique is a simpler, safer, and less expensive alternative and therefore more likely to gain widespread use. Only controlled comparisons can show whether the current belief about the superiority of ambulatory perineural techniques over WCI is justified. Such studies should address technical failures, side effects, home care of the medically unsupervised or undersupervised patient, and cost-effectiveness to demonstrate which of the 2 techniques is most appropriate for a particular procedure.
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Reg Anesth Pain Med · Jan 2012
Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative StudyComparison of a single- or double-injection technique for ultrasound-guided supraclavicular block: a prospective, randomized, blinded controlled study.
Despite good success rates reported with ultrasound-guided supraclavicular block using 1 or multiple injections, no consensus exists on the best technique to use. We designed this study to test the hypothesis that a double-injection technique would hasten the onset of sensory block. ⋯ The double-injection technique offers no benefit over a single injection for the performance of an ultrasound-guided supraclavicular block.