block (PNB). Oddly enough,
that's not the case. A
September 2017 study in
Anesthesia & Analgesia
(osmag.net/J5xoGN) that
examined the use of regional
anesthesia for outpatient sur-
gery procedures found that
regional anesthesia was used
sparingly:
• Frequency was only 3.3%
of the 3.3 million possible
cases that were amenable
to a PNB.
• PNB frequency of the
brachial plexus (6.1%), sci-
atic nerve (1.5%) and
femoral nerve (1.9%) was
similarly low.
• The procedures in which PNBs were most frequently used were shoul-
der arthroscopies (41%) and anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction
(32%).
Countless patients are missing out on targeted pain relief that can reduce
opioid use, shorten stays in recovery and lower readmission rates. We
talked to leading experts in regional anesthesia to find out how they're tak-
ing advantage of blocks.
Local assistance
Regional blocks are typically placed with the assistance of ultrasound
guidance, which offers anesthesia providers great image quality and granu-
2 6 • O U T PA T I E N T S U R G E R Y M A G A Z I N E • J A N U A R Y 2 0 2 0
• SHOULDER ON Interscalene blocks keep patients comfortable during
the critical first days of recovery, when pain is at its highest.
Pamela
Bevelhymer,
RN,
BSN,
CNOR
