Articles: nerve-block.
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Reg Anesth Pain Med · Jul 2024
Thoracic sympathetic ganglion blocks: real-world outcomes in 207 chronic pain patients.
Thoracic sympathetic ganglion block (TSGB) is a procedure to manage sympathetically maintained upper extremity pain (sympathetically maintained pain). To date, only a few studies have evaluated the clinical effectiveness of TSGB in pain medicine. This study investigated (1) the relationship between technical success of TSGB and pain reduction in patients with chronic upper extremity pain and (2) relevant clinical factors for a positive TSGB outcome. ⋯ We found no significant association between the temperature increase and pain reduction after TSGB. Further studies are warranted to identify significant factors associated with TSGB outcomes in patients with complex regional pain syndrome and neuropathic pain diseases.
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Reg Anesth Pain Med · Jul 2024
Observational StudyIncidence of acute compartment syndrome with routine use of regional anesthesia for patients with long bone fractures: a large single-center retrospective review from a level I trauma tertiary academic institution.
Traditionally, using peripheral nerve blocks (PNBs) in patients with long bone fractures has been limited due to concerns that it may interfere with the timely diagnosis of acute compartment syndrome (ACS). However, our large academic institution and level I trauma center have been using regional anesthesia routinely for pain management of patients with long bone fractures for more than a decade, with strict adherence to a comprehensive management protocol. The aim of this retrospective review is to present our experience with this practice. ⋯ Current recommendations on using PNBs in patients at risk for ACS have been mainly based on expert opinion and dated case reports. Due to the nature of the condition, prospective data are lacking. Our large observational dataset evaluated the risk of missing or delaying ACS diagnosis when PNBs were offered for trauma patients and demonstrated a relatively low incidence of ACS despite the routine use of PNBs under strictly protocolized conditions when patients were managed by a dedicated multidisciplinary care team.
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Reg Anesth Pain Med · Jul 2024
Relationship between injectate volume and disposition in erector spinae plane block: a cadaveric study.
Erector spinae plane (ESP) blocks can be used to provide analgesia following thoracoabdominal and lumbar spine surgical procedures. However, the influence of injectate volume and injection location on the spread of anesthetic with ESP blocks remain unclear. ⋯ Increased ESP injection volumes resulted in more extensive cephalocaudal spread, resulting in anesthetic spread to the dorsal rami and ventral ES muscle without involvement of the ventral rami or other anterior structures. Injection volumes of 30 mL may be optimal for ESP blocks requiring analgesia across 4-7 levels.
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Reg Anesth Pain Med · Jul 2024
ReviewDifferential nerve blockade to explain anterior thoracic analgesia without sensory blockade after an erector spinae plane block may be wishful thinking.
Ultrasound-guided erector spinae plane block (ESPB) is currently used as a component of multimodal analgesic regimen in a multitude of indications but the mechanism by which it produces anterior thoracic analgesia remains a subject of controversy. This is primarily the result of ESPB's failure to consistently produce cutaneous sensory blockade (to pinprick and cold sensation) over the anterior hemithorax. ⋯ In particular, it is claimed that at a low concentration of local anesthetic, the C nerve fibers would be preferentially blocked than the Aδ nerve fibers. However, the proposal that isolated C fiber mediated analgesia with preserved Aδ fiber mediated cold and pinprick sensation after an ESPB is unlikely, has never been demonstrated and, thus, without sufficient evidence, cannot be attributed to the presumed analgesic effects of an ESPB.