Journal of ultrasound in medicine : official journal of the American Institute of Ultrasound in Medicine
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Randomized Controlled Trial
Ultrasound guidance versus electrical stimulation for infraclavicular brachial plexus perineural catheter insertion.
Electrical stimulation (ES)- and ultrasound-guided placement techniques have been described for infraclavicular brachial plexus perineural catheters but to our knowledge have never been previously compared in a randomized fashion, leaving the optimal method undetermined. We tested the hypothesis that infraclavicular catheters placed via ultrasound guidance alone require less time for placement and produce equivalent results compared with catheters placed solely via ES. ⋯ Placement of infraclavicular perineural catheters takes less time, is more often successful, and results in fewer inadvertent vascular punctures when using ultrasound guidance compared with ES.