ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Although cervical epidural block can be a useful therapeutic treatment for head, neck and upper extremities pain, there is no consensus regarding the volume of injection required for pain management. Herein, the spreading in the vertebral segments after a cervical epidural injection of either a 5 or 10 ml volume was studied. METHODS: A total of 78 patients, suffering from head, neck and upper extremity pain, were selected. Cervical epidural blocks were performed consecutively with 5 ml (n = 42) and 10 ml (n = 36) of 0.4% mepivacaine and 222 mg I/ml iopamidol at the C7 T1 levels. Both anteroposterior (AP) and lateral radiographs were obtained under fluoroscopy, and the upper and lower epidural spreading of the contrast media in relation to the vertebral level was evaluated. RESULTS: The cervical epidural blocks were performed without complications. The rostral spreading of the contrast media in the vertebral segments in groups 1 and 2 were 5.6 +/- 1.1 and 6.1 +/- 1.1, respectively. The caudal spreading of the contrast media in the vertebral segments in groups 1 and 2 were 5.4 +/- 3.4 and 7.2 +/- 3.9, respectively. The total numbers of segments with vertebral spreading of the contrast media in both directions showed significant differences between the two groups. The numbers of patients who showed spreading of the contrast media up to C2 vertebral segment showed no significant differences between the two groups. CONCLUSIONS: 5 and 10 ml epidural injection volumes may be adequate for the spread of contrast media to the entire cervical spine. A 5 ml epidural injection volume, compared to a 10 ml volume, may be ample when considering the possibility of unnecessary caudal spreading of drugs and volume related complications in the management of head, neck and upper extremity pain.