Regional anesthesia and pain medicine
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Reg Anesth Pain Med · Sep 2000
Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative Study Clinical TrialComparison of 0.5% intrathecal bupivacaine with 0.5% intrathecal ropivacaine in the treatment of refractory cancer and noncancer pain conditions: results from a prospective, crossover, double-blind, randomized study.
Intrathecal (IT) administration of bupivacaine (BUP) for treatment of "refractory" pain has sometimes been associated with unacceptable side effects. This study was undertaken to determine if IT-ropivacaine (ROP) can reduce the rate and intensity of these side effects e.g., urinary retention, paresthesia, and particularly, paresis with gait impairment. A prospective, crossover, double-blind, randomized study. ⋯ The results of this study do not support the hypothesis that IT infusion of 0.5% ROP has advantages over IT infusion of 0.5% BUP when administered for relief of "refractory" pain.
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Reg Anesth Pain Med · Sep 2000
Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative Study Clinical TrialPostoperative analgesia after peripheral nerve block for podiatric surgery: clinical efficacy and chemical stability of lidocaine alone versus lidocaine plus ketorolac.
The purpose of this study was to determine whether the addition of ketorolac tromethamine to local anesthesia for ankle block alters the quality or duration of analgesia after podiatric surgery. The second aim was to determine the chemical stability of ketorolac tromethamine when added to local anesthetic solutions. ⋯ The addition of ketorolac to lidocaine for ankle block contributed to longer duration and better quality analgesia after foot surgery compared with plain 1.73% lidocaine or 1.73% lidocaine plus intravenous ketorolac. The ethanol vehicle is unlikely responsible for the analgesic effects of ketorolac. Ketorolac retains its chemical stability when placed in local solutions of lidocaine or bupivacaine.
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Reg Anesth Pain Med · Sep 2000
Randomized Controlled Trial Clinical TrialEffect of oral mexiletine on capsaicin-induced allodynia and hyperalgesia: a double-blind, placebo-controlled, crossover study.
Mexiletine is a sodium channel blocker that has been used for the treatment of a variety of neuropathic pain syndromes. A recent double-blinded placebo-controlled study concluded that it was ineffective in the treatment of allodynia associated with neuropathic pain. However, this study failed to achieve adequate plasma levels of mexiletine. This was a study in healthy volunteers that sought to push the drug to dose-limiting side effects and then evaluate the effects on human experimental pain. ⋯ Mexiletine has minimal effects on human experimental pain. It is severely limited by side effects and tolerable doses seem to be void of effects on normal neurosensation and facilitated pain induced by capsaicin and thermal heat pulses.