Regional anesthesia
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Regional anesthesia · May 1995
Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative Study Clinical TrialAging reduces the reliability of epidural epinephrine test doses.
The authors recently determined that intravascular injection of an epinephrine test dose reliably produced an increase in heart rate > or = 20 beats/min in young individuals. However, aging is associated with a significant reduction in beta-adrenergic responsiveness. This study was designed to determine whether aging decreases the magnitude of heart rate (HR) increase after intravascular injection of epinephrine. ⋯ Aging is associated with a reduction in the magnitude of HR increase after intravenous injection of epinephrine. The results suggest that to detect an intravascular injection in healthy people, a test dose containing 10 micrograms epinephrine will suffice before the age of 40. However, even 15 micrograms epinephrine will not be totally reliable in older patients, owing to decreased beta-adrenergic responsiveness.
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Regional anesthesia · May 1995
ReviewDoes sympathetic ganglionic block prevent postherpetic neuralgia? Literature review.
To examine specifically the role of sympathetic block in the prevention of postherpetic neuralgia by its application in the treatment of acute herpes zoster. ⋯ Considering the degree of uncertainty, and the seriousness of postherpetic neuralgia, sympathetic block in addition to treatment with acyclovir should be considered early during acute herpes zoster. Large controlled trials are needed to provide the necessary scientific evidence.
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Regional anesthesia · May 1995
Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative Study Clinical TrialEffect of anesthetic technique on acute formalin-induced pain in mice.
The aim of this study was to determine if anesthetic technique influences the degree of acute formalin-induced pain in mice. ⋯ The administration of a pre-emptive subarachnoid lidocaine block in the combined spinal/general anesthesia group did not reduce the degree of formalin-induced paw-licking behavior. Combined spinal/general anesthesia did not decrease acute formalin-induced pain in mice.
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Regional anesthesia · May 1995
Case ReportsLong-term brachial plexus anesthesia using a subcutaneous implantable injection system. Case report.
Continuous brachial plexus anesthesia with local anesthesia has been used since 1946 for prolonged surgical procedures, in postoperative pain relief, and in sympathetic nerve block. The benefit or effectiveness of this technique in the relief of sympathetically maintained pain has yet to be established. ⋯ Controlled studies need to be done to establish the safety and efficacy of this form of therapy.
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Regional anesthesia · May 1995
Biography Historical ArticleRegional anesthesia and chronic pain management in the 1920s and 1930s. The influence of the American Society of Regional Anesthesia.
Physicians in the 1920s and 1930s began to treat patients with chronic pain syndromes using regional anesthetic techniques for both temporary and permanent block of pain pathways. The founding of the American Society of Regional Anesthesia (ASRA) in 1923 provided a unique venue for the dissemination of information concerning regional anesthesia for both surgery and chronic pain management. ⋯ The ASRA was instrumental in bringing together physicians interested in regional anesthesia and pain management. During the 1930s physician anesthetists came to predominate as the organization's officers and members and helped translate the work of the ASRA into a part of the knowledge required to be a specialist physician in anesthesia.