Regional Anesthesia and Pain Medicine back issues from January 2007:
Informed Consent for Regional Anesthesia: What Is Necessary?
Jan 01, 2007; ... In this issue of Regional Anesthesia and Pain Medicine, Brull et al.1 described what risks were disclosed to patients by academic anesthesiologists and anesthesia fellows in North American regional-anesthesia fellowship programs in obtaining informed consent for regional anesthesia. Brull et ...
Epidemics, Evolution, and Sacroiliac Joint Pain
Jan 01, 2007; ... Western society is in the midst of an epidemic. This epidemic is not as striking or spectacular as some previous ones, such as the bubonic plague epidemics that wreaked havoc throughout the Middle Ages, or the influenza pandemic that killed nearly 50 million people in 1918. Yet it is equally ...
Disclosure of Risks Associated With Regional Anesthesia: A Survey of Academic Regional Anesthesiologists
Jan 01, 2007; ... Background and Objectives: In view of the relatively few large studies available to estimate the rates of complications following regional anesthesia, we aimed to identify and quantify the risks that academic regional anesthesiologists and regional anesthesia fellows disclose to their patients ...
An Alternate Method of Radiofrequency Neurotomy of the Sacroiliac Joint: A Pilot Study of the Effect on Pain, Function, and Satisfaction
Jan 01, 2007; ... Background and Objectives: The sacroiliac joint (SIJ) can be a source of chronic refractory mechanical spine pain. Few previous studies have described radiofrequency (RF) sensory denervation of the SIJ; results have been inconsistent and technically demanding. This uncontrolled, prospective, ...
Effect of Addition of Various Doses of Fentanyl Intrathecally to 0.5% Hyperbaric Bupivacaine on Perioperative Analgesia and Subarachnoid-Block Characteristics in Lower Abdominal Surgery: A Dose-Response Study
Jan 01, 2007; ... Background: The purpose of this randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial is to study the effect of adding various doses of fentanyl to 2.2 mL of bupivacaine (0.5% hyperbaric), for spinal anesthetic in nonobstetric population undergoing superficial lower abdominal surgery (hernia ...
Medial Branch Blocks Versus Pericapsular Blocks in Selecting Patients for Percutaneous Cryodenervation of Lumbar Facet Joints
Jan 01, 2007; ... Background and Objectives: At many institutions, it is not practically feasible to perform a series of controlled or placebo-controlled medial branch blocks on several facet joints in order to select patients for facet joint rhizotomy. As for uncontrolled blocks, there is no proof that medial ...
An Assessment Tool for Brachial Plexus Regional Anesthesia Performance: Establishing Construct Validity and Reliability
Jan 01, 2007; ... Background and Objectives: Technical proficiency in regional anesthesia is often determined subjectively through in-training evaluations. Objective assessment tools improve these evaluations by providing criteria for measurement. However, any evaluation instrument needs to be valid and reliable ...
Epidural Catheter Placement in Neonates: Sonoanatomy and Feasibility of Ultrasonographic Guidance in Term and Preterm Neonates
Jan 01, 2007; ... Background: We report the first prospective sonoanatomic study in neonates with the aim to perform ultrasonographic-guided epidural catheter placement in this age group. Method: One hundred forty-five neonates with a body weight ≤4 kg (0.53-4 kg) were included in this prospective ...
Hospitalization Costs of Total Knee Arthroplasty With a Continuous Femoral Nerve Block Provided Only in the Hospital Versus on an Ambulatory Basis: A Retrospective, Case-Control, Cost-Minimization Analysis
Jan 01, 2007; ... Background and Objectives: After total knee arthroplasty (TKA), hospitalization may be shortened by allowing patients to return home with a continuous femoral nerve block (CFNB). This study quantified the hospitalization costs for 10 TKA patients receiving ambulatory CFNB versus a matched cohort ...
Single-Injection Brachial Plexus Anesthesia for Arteriovenous Fistula Surgery of the Forearm: A Comparison of Infraclavicular Coracoid and Axillary Approach
Jan 01, 2007; ... Background and Objectives: The surgical site for the creation of an arteriovenous fistula at the lateral aspect of the distal forearm may be faster and more effectively blocked with the infraclavicular coracoid approach than with the axillary approach for brachial plexus block. Methods: ...
Enhancement of Proopiomelanocortin Gene Promoter Activity by Local Anesthetics in a Pituitary Cell Line
Jan 01, 2007; ... Background and Objectives: Corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH) induces gene expression of proopiomelanocortin, a precursor protein of adrenocorticotropic hormone and β-endorphin, by elevating intracellular cyclic adenosine 3',5'-monophosphate (cyclic AMP) level in anterior pituitary cells ...
Falls Associated with Lower-Extremity-Nerve Blocks: A Pilot Investigation of Mechanisms
Jan 01, 2007; ... Objective: Documented falls after lower-extremity-nerve blocks are rare. We believe this paucity of documented falls is the result of underreporting and the lack of serious complications resulting from these falls. In addition, the mechanism(s) for falls after lower-extremity-nerve blocks has ...
Uniform Distribution of Skin-Temperature Increase After Different Regional-Anesthesia Techniques of the Lower Extremity
Jan 01, 2007; ... Background and Objectives: Skin-temperature increase is a reliable but late indicator of success during regional-anesthesia techniques. The goal of this study is to determine the distribution of skin-temperature changes during different regional techniques. Does skin temperature increase in the ...
Review of Brachial Plexus Anatomy As Seen on Diagnostic Imaging: Clinical Correlation With Computed Tomography-Guided Brachial Plexus Block
Jan 01, 2007; ... Brachial plexus block provides anesthesia to all deep structures from the shoulder to the hand and has been used to provide operative anesthesia,1-3 achieve postoperative analgesia in the upper extremity,4 and treat pain associated with invasive cancer through neurolytic brachial plexus block.5 ...
Facilitating Needle Alignment In-Plane to an Ultrasound Beam Using a Portable Laser Unit
Jan 01, 2007; ... Objective: Ultrasound guidance can increase success with peripheral nerve blocks. Accurate anesthetic injection is optimized with both clear visualization and fine adjustment of the needle tip at the target area. Good needle alignment with the ultrasound beam and using a freehand technique are ...
A Typical Low-Back Pain Caused by an Atypical Etiology
Jan 01, 2007; ... Objective: Pain arising in the lumbar spine can have many etiologies, nearly 80% of which cannot be established with certainty. We present a very rare cause of back pain. Case Report: A 54-year-old woman presented with a 2-month history of low-back pain and right-sided sciatica ....
Ultrasound Guidance for Brachial Plexus Localization and Catheter Insertion After Complete Forearm Amputation
Jan 01, 2007; ... To the Editor: Brachial plexus block is used commonly for intraoperative and postoperative anesthesia and analgesia for upper-limb surgery. Patients may benefit from superior analgesia and reduced requirements for systemic opioids. Beyond that, the sympatholytic effect of ...
Lateral Popliteal Sciatic-Nerve Block Made Easy
Jan 01, 2007; ... To the Editor: The association of sciatic-nerve and saphenous-nerve blocks has proved extremely efficacious in providing surgical anesthesia for foot and ankle surgery. Identification of surface landmarks for the lateral popliteal sciatic-nerve block depends upon the accurate location of ...
Eight Ball, Corner Pocket: The Optimal Needle Position for Ultrasound-Guided Supraclavicular Block
Jan 01, 2007; ... To the Editor: The supraclavicular approach to the brachial plexus (BP) can provide excellent anesthesia for upper-extremity surgery. When compared with the axillary block, the supraclavicular approach to the brachial plexus offers a distinct advantage, specifically, faster onset of a ...
ASRA Continuing Education Calendar
Jan 01, 2007; ... For information contact: ASRA, 520 N. Northwest Highway, Park Ridge, IL 60068, U.S.A. telephone 847/825-7246, fax 847/825-5658 E-mail g.hoormann@asahq.org http://www.asra.com 2007 April 19-22, 2007 32nd Annual Regional Anesthesia Meeting ...