Articles: nerve-block.
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The Journal of urology · Dec 2003
Randomized Controlled Trial Clinical TrialThe optimum doses of and injection locations for periprostatic nerve blockade for transrectal ultrasound guided biopsy of the prostate: a prospective, randomized, placebo controlled study.
We evaluated the efficiency of various amounts of local anesthesia and various numbers of injection sites to determine the most effective pain control with the least number of injections and the amount of injected medium in patients who underwent transrectal ultrasound guided prostate biopsy. ⋯ Our placebo controlled, prospective, randomized study indicated that 10 cc local anesthetic injections supply significantly better pain control than lower doses for periprostatic nerve blockade during prostate biopsy. Although bilateral basal plus apical 10 cc lidocaine injections resulted in the lowest mean pain score, there was no statistically significant difference from 10 cc bilateral basal injections.
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The authors present their experience of > 1000 axillary brachial plexus blocks performed over 13 years (1990-2002). Using a technique that involves the location of individual nerves with a nerve stimulator, the overall success rate was 97.9%, ranging from 89.7% in 1990 to 98.4% in 1998. ⋯ The first author, trained and supervised by the second author, achieved similar success rates in half the time taken by the second author. The authors conclude that technique and experience are the keys to success, but that high success rates can be achieved in a short time if anaesthetists are trained by experts in regional anaesthesia.
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Am J Forensic Med Pathol · Dec 2003
Case ReportsDeath during transforaminal epidural steroid nerve root block (C7) due to perforation of the left vertebral artery.
Treatment for individuals suffering from migraines and pain due to an inflammation or impingement of a nerve range from noninvasive methods such as massage, physical therapy, and medications to invasive methods such as epidural steroid injections and surgery. Each method of treatment has an associated level of risk. ⋯ We report the first cited case of a death associated with the pain management procedure called nerve root block, also referred to as a transforaminal epidural steroid injection. We present the medical history and autopsy findings of a 44-year-old white female who died of massive cerebral edema secondary to the dissection of the left vertebral artery and subsequent thrombosis due to the perforation of that artery by a 25-gauge spinal needle during a C-7 nerve root block.
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The mechanisms responsible for initiation of persistent neuropathic pain after peripheral nerve injury are unclear. One hypothesis is that injury discharge and early ectopic discharges in injured nerves produce activity-dependent irreversible changes in the central nervous system. The aim of this study was to determine whether blockade of peripheral discharge by blocking nerve conduction before and 1 week after nerve injury could prevent the development and persistence of neuropathic pain-like behavior in the spared nerve injury model. ⋯ Peripheral long-term nerve blockade has no detectable effect on the development of allodynia or hyperalgesia in the spared nerve injury model. It is unlikely that injury discharge at the time of nerve damage or the early onset of ectopic discharges arising from the injury site contributes significantly to the persistence of stimulus-evoked neuropathic pain in this model.