Peripheral Nerve Blocks in Patients with Diabetic Neuropathy and other Neuropathies: A Narrative Review.

Neuropathy, arising from different etiologies, can be a majordebilitating condition that leads to pain,reduces physicalmovement and amputation. Among all known neuropathyetiologies, diabetes mellitus is one of the significant causesthat results in peripheral and other type of neuropathies thatresult in physiological discomfort and mortality. Prolongedhyperglycemia-induced oxidative stress causes damage toneuron resulting in a range of symptoms to pain and internalorgan failure. Although treatment strategies exist to alleviatethe pain symptoms, there is no existing therapy to eliminatethe root cause of neuropathy. Presently, peripheral nerveblock by several anesthetic agents shows great promise inmanaging diabetes-induced neuropathy and neuropathiesof other etiologies. This article discusses different types ofneuropathies and their classifications with special emphasison diabetic neuropathy. The following section discusses theextent of severity of the condition in terms of its epidemiologyand associated complications. The article provides an elaborateidea on different anesthetic agents used in peripheral nerveblock in diabetic neuropathy and other neuropathic conditions.Peripheral nerve block shows a potential efficiency whensingle and combination doses of anesthetics are used. Differentadjuvants are also used in combination with anesthetics toprolong and enhance the effect of analgesia. Looking at theseverity, physiological, psychosocial and economic burden ofthe neuropathic disease, more in-depth studies and discussionshould be initiated to strengthen the use of peripheral nerveblock in the management of diabetic and other neuropathies.

Ultrasound-guided lumbar sympathetic block for flap repair of lower limb defects / 中华创伤骨科杂志

Objective To evaluate the efficacy of ultrasound-guided lumbar sympathetic block (LSB) used for flap repair of lower limb defects.Methods A retrospective study was conducted of the 27 patients who had received flap repair of lower limb defects at Department of Anesthesiology,Central People's Hospital of Zhanjiang surgery from June 2017 to December 2018.Of them,14 had conventional flap repair (conventional group) and 13 additional ultrasound-guided LSB (LSB group).The 2 groups were compared at 12,24,48 and 72 hours after operation in terms of color,texture,skin temperature and survival of the flaps and visual analogue scale (VAS) pain scores.Functional recovery of flap sensation after one month follow-up was also observed and compared.Results The 2 groups were comparable because there were no significant differences between them in the preoperative general data(P ＞ 0.05).All the patients were followed up for an average of 3.1 months (from 2 to 6 months).At 12 and 24 hours after operation,the LSB group had significantly more patients with normal flap color (84.6％ and 92.3％) than the conventional group (35.7％ and 50.0％) (P ＜ 0.05).At 12,24,48 and 72 hours after operation,the LSB group had significantly higher skin temperature (36.7 ± 0.2 ℃,36.8±0.3 ℃,36.9±0.2 ℃ and 36.9±0.1 ℃) than the conventional group(35.4±0.4 ℃,35.7 ± 0.6 ℃,35.9 ± 0.3 ℃ and 36.2 ± 0.2 ℃) (P ＜ 0.05).At 12 and 24 hours after operation,the LSB group had significantly lower VAS pain scores (2.1 ± 1.0 and 2.3 ± 0.9) than the conventional group(4.6 ± 0.9 and 4.4 ±0.8) (P ＜0.05).All the flaps in the LSB group obtained primary survival after operation while infection occurred in one case in the conventional group.One month follow-up showed that 12 patients in the LSB group (92.3％) obtained sensory recovery of flaps while 6 ones (42.9％) did in the conventional group,showing a significant difference (P ＜ 0.05).Conclusion As an auxiliary treatment for flap repair of lower limb defects,SLB can improve the blood supply to the transplanted flap and facilitate the recovery of nerve function in the graft flap.

Comparison of ultrasound-guided stellate ganglion block at 6th and 7th cervical vertebrae using the lateral paracarotid out-of-plane approach for sympathetic blockade in the upper extremity / 영남의대학술지

BACKGROUND: The authors have performed ultrasound-guided stellate ganglion block (SGB) in our clinic using a lateral paracarotid approach at the level of the 6th cervical vertebra (C6). Although SGB at C6 is a convenient and safe method, there are ongoing concerns about the weak effect of sympathetic blockade in the ipsilateral upper extremity. Therefore, ultrasound-guided SGB was attempted using a lateral paracarotid approach at the level of the 7th cervical vertebra (C7). This prospective study aimed to compare changes in skin temperature after SGB was performed at C6 and C7, and to introduce a lateral paracarotid approach for SGB.METHODS: Thirty patients underwent SGB twice: once at C6 and once at C7. For every SGB, the skin temperature of the patient's hypothenar area was measured for 15 min at 1-min intervals. Skin temperatures before and after SGB and side effects were compared between C6 and C7 groups.RESULTS: The temperature of the upper extremity increased after SGB was performed at C6 and C7. There were significant differences between mean pre-SGB and the largest increases in post-SGB temperatures (0.50±0.38℃ and 1.41±0.68℃ at C6 and C7, respectively; p < 0.05). Significantly increased post-SGB temperatures (difference >1℃) were found in 5/30 (16.7%) and 24/30 (80%) cases for C6 and C7, respectively (p < 0.05). There were no significant differences in side effects between SGB performed at C6 or C7 (p>0.05).CONCLUSION: The lateral paracarotid approach using out-of-plane needle insertion for ultrasound-guided SGB performed at C7 was feasible and more effective at elevating skin temperature in the upper extremity than SGB at C6.

Eficácia do bloqueio simpático torácico no tratamento da síndrome complexa de dor regional do membro superior / Efficacy of the thoracic sympathetic block for treatment of the complex regional pain syndrome of the upper limb

INTRODUÇÃO: Há poucos estudos bem estruturados sobre a eficácia do bloqueio anestésico do gânglio estrelado (BGE) e do bloqueio simpático torácico (BST) para o tratamento da síndrome complexa de dor regional (SCDR) do membro superior. Há evidências anatômicas e clínicas de que o BGE frequentemente não interrompe a atividade neurovegetativa simpática do membro superior. OBJETIVOS: Avaliar-se a eficácia do BST para tratar a SCDR do membro superior. CASUÍSTICA E MÉTODOS: De acordo com estudo controlado com amostra aleatória e duplamente encoberto, doentes com SCDR, com duração maior que seis meses, foram aleatoriamente submetidos ao método padronizado de tratamento (polifarmacoterapia e terapia física) associadamente aos procedimentos BST ou ao bloqueio controle. Foram comparados os aspectos demográficos, a apresentação clínica, a intensidade da dor, as alterações do humor, a qualidade de vida, a função do membro acometido e os eventos adversos dos procedimentos até um ano após sua realização. Foram utilizadas entrevistas estruturadas, o Inventário Breve de Dor (IBD), o Questionário de Dor McGill (QDM), o Questionário para Diagnóstico de Dor Neuropática (DN4), o Inventário de Sintomas de Dor Neuropática (NPSI), o questionário "Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale" (HAD), o questionário de qualidade de vida WHOQOL-bref, o questionário de avaliação funcional "Disabilities of Arm, Shoulder and Hand" e a análise de amplitude dos movimentos (ADM) como métodos de avaliação. RESULTADOS: Foram elegíveis 63 doentes, dos quais 42 foram incluídos, destes, 36 completaram o estudo. Em 17 realizou-se o BST e em 19 o bloqueio controle. Não houve diferenças estatísticas quanto às características demográficas e clínicas entre doentes tratados com BST ou do grupo controle. Houve melhora significativa da dor em relação ao IBD "dor agora" e "atividade geral"; soma dos pontos do QDM ; questões sete, nove e 11 do NPSI nos doentes tratados com BST em relação...

INTRODUCTION: There are few well-structured studies evaluating the efficacy stellate ganglion block (SGB) or the thoracic sympathetic block (TSB) for treatment of the complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS) of the upper limb. It is possible that a large proportion of SGBs does not interrupt the sympathetic activity of the upper limb. OBJECTIVES: Evaluation of the efficacy of the TSB in treatment of the CRPS of the upper limb. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Patients with CRPS I were randomly treated with polypharmacotherapy plus physical therapy and TBS or a control block. The epidemiological aspects, clinical presentation of the CRPS, severity of pain, mood abnormalities, quality of life, functionality of the affected limb, and adverse events of the interventions were evaluated. Structured interviews the Brief Pain Inventory (BPI), the McGill Pain Questionnaire (MPQ), the Neuropathic Pain Diagnostic Questionnaire (DN4), the Neuropathic Pain Symptoms Inventory (NPSI), the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HAD), the WHOQOL-BREF quality of life questionnaire, the Disabilities of Arm, Shoulder, and Hand Functional Assessment Questionnaire (DASH), and the range of movements (ROM) were the tools used for evaluation. RESULTS: Sixty-three patients were eligible, 42 were included, and 36 patients with CRPS I, lasting six months or longer completed the study. TSB 17 patients and 19 control block. There were no statistical differences in demographic or clinical characteristics between the patients of both groups. There was a significant improvement of pain according to the BPI items "current pain" and "general activity"; MPQ sum of points and NPSI questions four, seven, nine, 11 in patients treated with TSB relation to the control group shortterm (one and two months alter the block). One year after procedure according to the BPI "average pain", MPQ sum of points, NPSI questions four, eight and ten there was also significant pain improvement in the patients TSB...

The Effect of Superior Cervical Ganglionectomy on Recovery of Olfaction in Induced Anosmic Mice / 대한이비인후과학회지

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: This study was undertaken to evaluate the effect of superior cervical ganglionectomy (SCG) on anosmia, which is peripherally induced in the mice. MATERIALS AND METHOD: Three groups of mice (BCF1) were studied: normal control (nasal instillation of saline, n=6); zinc sulfate group (nasal instillation of 64 mM zinc sulfate, n=25); SCG group (superior cervical ganglionectomy after nasal instillation of 64 mM zinc sulfate, n=25). Tissues of olfactory mucosa were obtained at 1, 2, 3, 4 and 7 weeks after instillation of zinc sulfate, and processed for immunohistochemistry using antisera to olfactory marker protein (OMP) to evaluate the olfactory regeneration. RESULTS: No OMP-positive cells were observed in the first two weeks after the instillation of zinc sulfate in both zinc sulfate group and the SCG group. However, the OMP-positive cells appeared first at 3 weeks after the instillation in both groups, and gradually increased in number at 4 and 7 weeks. In the SCG group, the increase of OMP-positive cells was significantly greater than those of the zinc sulfate group. The number of OMP-positive cells in the SCG group at 7 weeks was almost similar to that of the normal control group. CONCLUSION: SCG enhances regeneration of olfactory receptor cells at 3 weeks after injury. It was inferred from the above results that SCG has a significant effect on the regeneration of olfactory receptor cells and we suggest that SCG could be an effective treatment modality for olfactory dysfunction.