Regional anesthesia and pain medicine
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Reg Anesth Pain Med · Sep 2017
ReviewFocused Cardiac Ultrasound for the Regional Anesthesiologist and Pain Specialist.
This article in our point-of-care ultrasound (PoCUS) series discusses the benefits of focused cardiac ultrasound (FoCUS) for the regional anesthesiologist and pain specialist. Focused cardiac US is an important tool for all anesthesiologists assessing patients with critical conditions such as shock and cardiac arrest. However, given that ultrasound-guided regional anesthesia is emerging as the new standard of care, there is an expanding role for ultrasound in the perioperative setting for regional anesthesiologists to help improve patient assessment and management. ⋯ Postoperatively, FoCUS can help diagnose and manage common yet life-threatening complications such as pulmonary embolism or derangements in volume status. In this article, we introduce to the regional anesthesiologist interested in learning FoCUS the basic views (subcostal 4-chamber, subcostal inferior vena cava, parasternal short axis, parasternal long axis, and apical 4-chamber), as well as the relevant sonoanatomy. We will also use the I-AIM (Indication, Acquisition, Interpretation, and Medical decision making) framework to describe the clinical circumstances where FoCUS can help identify and manage obvious pathology relevant to the regional anesthesiologist and pain specialist, specifically severe aortic stenosis, hypovolemia, local anesthetic systemic toxicity, and massive pulmonary embolism.
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Reg Anesth Pain Med · Sep 2017
Editorial CommentPrecise Anatomical Targeting: Location, Location, Location!
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Reg Anesth Pain Med · Sep 2017
ReviewCadaveric Study of the Articular Branches of the Shoulder Joint.
This cadaveric study investigated the anatomic relationships of the articular branches of the suprascapular (SN), axillary (AN), and lateral pectoral nerves (LPN), which are potential targets for shoulder analgesia. ⋯ Articular branches from the SN, AN, and LPN were identified. Articular branches of the SN and AN insert into the capsule overlying the glenohumeral joint posteriorly. Articular branches of the LPN exist and innervate a portion of the anterior shoulder joint.
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Reg Anesth Pain Med · Sep 2017
Randomized Controlled TrialThe Effect of Ondansetron on Acute Opioid Tolerance in Patients Receiving Intrathecal Opioids Prior to Cesarean Delivery.
Multiple animal studies suggest that ondansetron ameliorates opioid-induced hyperalgesia and tolerance. In this study, we aimed to determine if the administration of ondansetron prior to spinal anesthesia would have an effect on intrathecal opioid-induced acute opioid tolerance, postoperative pain, and analgesic requirements in patients undergoing cesarean delivery with spinal anesthesia. ⋯ In patients undergoing cesarean delivery under spinal anesthesia with intrathecal opioids, the administration of ondansetron prior to spinal anesthesia did not significantly affect postoperative pain scores or opioid consumption. Thus, the administration of ondansetron did not have an effect on acute opioid tolerance in our study.
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Despite its popularity, ultrasound (US)-guided regional anesthesiology is associated with significant limitations. The latter can be attributed to either the US machine (ie, decreased ability to insonate deep neural structures, as well as the thoracic spine) or the operator. Shortcomings associated with the operator can be explained by errors in perception (ie, ambiguous criteria for needle/catheter tip-to-nerve proximity and subparaneural local anesthetic injection) or interpretation. ⋯ For continuous nerve blocks, combined US-neurostimulation may provide an objective end point (ie, an evoked motor response) for neural proximity and subparaneural positioning of the catheter tip. Finally, the solution to the plethora of nonvalidated US-guided blocks is both elegant and simple. New nerve blocks should answer a specific clinical need, and their first descriptions should take the form of an adequately powered, observer-blinded, randomized comparison against the established standard of care or, at the very least, a large case series (eg, a Brief Technical Report).