Regional anesthesia and pain medicine
-
Reg Anesth Pain Med · Jul 2003
Case ReportsUltrasound guidance for ulnar nerve block in the forearm.
The objective of this study was to establish the feasibility of ulnar nerve block under direct imaging. ⋯ Ultrasound guidance for ulnar nerve block in the forearm is a promising technique that includes block of the dorsal cutaneous branch. Anatomic and sonographic considerations are discussed.
-
Reg Anesth Pain Med · Jul 2003
Effect of postoperative epidural analgesia on morbidity and mortality after total hip replacement surgery in medicare patients.
The effect of postoperative epidural analgesia (vs. systemic analgesia) on patient outcomes is unclear. Available randomized controlled trials (RCTs) have focused on the intraoperative period and not properly examined the effect of postoperative epidural analgesia (EA) on outcomes. ⋯ The use of postoperative EA was not associated a lower incidence of mortality and major morbidity in Medicare patients undergoing total hip arthroplasty. However, the results should be interpreted with caution because of limitations in using the Medicare claims data for analysis. Further trials using other properly conducted and designed studies (e.g., RCTs) would be ideal to validate these results.
-
Reg Anesth Pain Med · Jul 2003
Case ReportsShoulder dislocation after infraclavicular coracoid block.
We report a case of shoulder dislocation after a brachial plexus block with a double-injection technique using the infraclavicular coracoid approach. ⋯ When motor block of the muscles of the shoulder occurs after brachial plexus anesthesia, special care must be taken in patient positioning to avoid shoulder dislocation.