Pain medicine : the official journal of the American Academy of Pain Medicine
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We report a novel block technique aimed to provide lumbosacral, abdominal, and hip analgesia: The quadro-iliac plane (QIP) block. ⋯ The local anesthetic applied from a place where the QLM reaches its largest volume and the fascial plane creates a closed gap in the caudal area may exhibit a more rounded and extensive spread.Quadro-iliac plane block, involves the administration of local anesthetic to the posterior aspect of the QLM at its origin from the iliac crest. According to our cadaver study, this technique may be a promising option for alleviating acute and chronic pain in the lumbosacral, lower abdominal, and hip regions.
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We analyzed application and match rates for pain medicine training in the United States and hypothesized that there would be (1) greater growth in the number of training positions than applicants, (2) higher match rates among US allopathic graduates relative to non-US allopathic graduates, and (3) greater number of unfilled training positions over time. ⋯ Stagnant annual applicant volume and increasing number of available training positions have led to increasing match rates for pain medicine fellowship training. Fewer US allopathic graduates are pursuing pain medicine training. The increasing percentage of unfilled training positions warrants ongoing surveillance.
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The aims of this study were to (1) evaluate the time between onset of occipital neuralgia symptoms and nerve decompression surgery, (2) perform a cost comparison analysis between surgical and nonsurgical treatment of occipital neuralgia, and (3) report postoperative results of nerve decompression for occipital neuralgia. ⋯ This study demonstrates that patients suffer from occipital neuralgia for an average of 19 years before undergoing surgery. Nerve decompression reduces symptom severity significantly and should be considered earlier in the treatment course of occipital neuralgia that is refractory to conservative treatment to prevent patient morbidity and decrease direct and indirect health care costs.