The association of prescription opioid use with incident cancer: A Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results-Medicare population-based case-control study.

BACKGROUND: Cancer is the second leading cause of death globally, and researchers seek to identify modifiable risk factors Over the past several decades, there has been ongoing debate whether opioids are associated with cancer development, metastasis, or recurrence. Basic science, clinical, and observational studies have produced conflicting results. The authors examined the association between prescription opioids and incident cancers using the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER)-Medicare database. A complex relation was observed between prescription opioids and incident cancer, and cancer site may be an important determinant. METHODS: By using linked SEER cancer registry and Medicare claims from 2008 through 2013, a case-control study was conducted examining the relation between cancer onset and prior opioid exposure. Logistic regression was used to account for differences between cases and controls for 10 cancer sites. RESULTS: Of the population studied (n = 348,319), 34% were prescribed opioids, 79.5% were white, 36.9% were dually eligible (for both Medicare and Medicaid), 13% lived in a rural area, 52.7% had ≥1 comorbidity, and 16% had a smoking-related diagnosis. Patients exposed to opioids had a lower odds ratio (OR) associated with breast cancer (adjusted OR, 0.96; 95% CI, 0.92-0.99) and colon cancer (adjusted OR, 0.90; 95% CI, 0.86-0.93) compared with controls. Higher ORs for kidney cancer, leukemia, liver cancer, lung cancer, and lymphoma, ranging from lung cancer (OR, 1.04; 95% CI, 1.01-1.07) to liver cancer (OR, 1.19; 95% CI, 1.08-1.31), were present in the exposed population. CONCLUSIONS: The current results suggest that an association exists between prescription opioids and incident cancer and that cancer site may play an important role. These findings can direct future research on specific patient populations that may benefit or be harmed by prescription opioid exposure.

Anaesthetic care of patients undergoing primary hip and knee arthroplasty: consensus recommendations from the International Consensus on Anaesthesia-Related Outcomes after Surgery group (ICAROS) based on a systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Evidence-based international expert consensus regarding anaesthetic practice in hip/knee arthroplasty surgery is needed for improved healthcare outcomes. METHODS: The International Consensus on Anaesthesia-Related Outcomes after Surgery group (ICAROS) systematic review, including randomised controlled and observational studies comparing neuraxial to general anaesthesia regarding major complications, including mortality, cardiac, pulmonary, gastrointestinal, renal, genitourinary, thromboembolic, neurological, infectious, and bleeding complications. Medline, PubMed, Embase, and Cochrane Library including Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, NHS Economic Evaluation Database, from 1946 to May 17, 2018 were queried. Meta-analysis and Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation approach was utilised to assess evidence quality and to develop recommendations. RESULTS: The analysis of 94 studies revealed that neuraxial anaesthesia was associated with lower odds or no difference in virtually all reported complications, except for urinary retention. Excerpt of complications for neuraxial vs general anaesthesia in hip/knee arthroplasty, respectively: mortality odds ratio (OR): 0.67, 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.57-0.80/OR: 0.83, 95% CI: 0.60-1.15; pulmonary OR: 0.65, 95% CI: 0.52-0.80/OR: 0.69, 95% CI: 0.58-0.81; acute renal failure OR: 0.69, 95% CI: 0.59-0.81/OR: 0.73, 95% CI: 0.65-0.82; deep venous thrombosis OR: 0.52, 95% CI: 0.42-0.65/OR: 0.77, 95% CI: 0.64-0.93; infections OR: 0.73, 95% CI: 0.67-0.79/OR: 0.80, 95% CI: 0.76-0.85; and blood transfusion OR: 0.85, 95% CI: 0.82-0.89/OR: 0.84, 95% CI: 0.82-0.87. CONCLUSIONS: Recommendation: primary neuraxial anaesthesia is preferred for knee arthroplasty, given several positive postoperative outcome benefits; evidence level: low, weak recommendation. RECOMMENDATION: neuraxial anaesthesia is recommended for hip arthroplasty given associated outcome benefits; evidence level: moderate-low, strong recommendation. Based on current evidence, the consensus group recommends neuraxial over general anaesthesia for hip/knee arthroplasty. TRIAL REGISTRY NUMBER: PROSPERO CRD42018099935.

The association of nephrolithiasis with prescription opioid use
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OBJECTIVE: To characterize opioid utilization among those with nephrolithiasis in a national cohort. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We performed cross sectional analysis of participants in the Medical Expenditure Panel Surveys during 2008 - 2014. Sample weights were employed for analysis of complex survey design. Those reporting occurrence of "renal or ureteral calculus" during the survey period represented the cohort of stone formers (SFs). Receipt of opioid prescription as well as total number of opioid prescriptions filled over study period were noted. RESULTS: Of 65,397 adult participants - weighted to represent 209,043,539 - 1.29% reported occurrence of nephrolithiasis. SFs were older, had higher BMI, and higher likelihood of depression and anxiety. Compared with those without nephrolithiasis, SFs had higher prevalence of opioid use (59.5 vs. 20.2%, p < 0.0001). On multivariate analysis, the odds of receiving an opioid prescription were increased greater than 5 times in SFs compared with those without stones (OR 5.61, 95% CI 4.59 - 6.85). Assessing each individual's total number of opioid prescriptions revealed SFs had a greater mean number of opioid prescriptions filled than those without nephrolithiasis (2.53 vs. 0.97, p < 0.001). Among SFs receiving opioids, depression and anxiety were both associated with a significantly greater number of opioid prescriptions (6.80 vs. 3.66, p < 0.001; and 8.91 vs. 3.38, p = 0.008, respectively). CONCLUSION: A majority of those with renal stone occurrence receive prescription opioids. Of particular note, the presence of either depression or anxiety is associated with larger total number of opioid prescriptions over the study period.
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Subanesthetic ketamine infusions for the management of pediatric pain in non-critical care settings: An observational analysis.

BACKGROUND: Guidelines issued by the American Society of Regional Anesthesia and Pain Medicine suggest that ketamine infusions for acute pain management are advantageous as a primary treatment or as an opioid adjunct. Despite significant data regarding its use in adult patients, there remains a paucity of information related to its quality and side effect profile in pediatrics and how it can be effectively used. We aimed to summarize our practice of utilizing ketamine for pediatric pain management in non-critical care settings. METHODS: Patients aged 0-21 years receiving low-dose ketamine infusions (≤0.3 mg/kg/hour) in inpatient care units over five years were retrospectively analyzed. Demographics, specific quality metrics, and side effects were quantified. RESULTS: About 172 patients received 270 subhypnotic ketamine infusions. The median duration of the infusions was 63.8 hours and 0.2 mg/kg/hour for the highest dose. The primary indication for ketamine was chronic pain exacerbation (83.3%). Despite similar opioid consumption, there was a significant reduction in mean verbal pain scores before (8.9 ± 1.9, P < .001) and after ketamine (6.5 ± 2.7, P < .001) use. Although there were 52 incidences of some side effect (neurologic excitability [10.4%]; over-sedation [7.4%]; rapid response team alerts [1.1%]), none resulted in termination of the infusion or escalations in care. CONCLUSION: Ketamine can effectively be used as part of a multimodal analgesic regimen in pediatric patients in non-critical care settings. Our five-year experience using low-dose ketamine infusions highlights an acceptable side effect profile, with no attributable escalations in care or serious adverse events.

Trends in Prescription Pain Medication Use by Race/Ethnicity Among US Adults With Noncancer Pain, 2000-2015.

OBJECTIVES: To examine national trends in the use of various pharmacological pain medication classes by race/ethnicity among the US pain population. METHODS: We used data from the Medical Expenditure Panel Survey to conduct a nationally representative, serial cross-sectional study of the noninstitutionalized US adult population from 2000 to 2015. We identified adults with moderate or severe self-reported pain and excluded individuals with cancer. We used complex survey design to provide national estimates of the percentage of adults with noncancer pain who received prescription pain medications among 4 groups: non-Hispanic White, non-Hispanic Black, Hispanic or Latino, and other. RESULTS: The age- and gender-adjusted percentage of prescription opioid use increased across all groups, with the greatest increase among non-Hispanic White individuals. By 2015, the percentage of non-Hispanic Black adults using opioids approximated that of non-Hispanic White adults-in 2015, approximately 23% of adults in these 2 groups used opioids. CONCLUSIONS: To our knowledge, this is the first evidence of a narrowing divide in opioid prescribing by race. However, in the context of the national epidemic of opioid-related addiction and mortality, opioid-related risks do not appear commensurate with the purported benefits.

Prescription Opioid Use and Satisfaction With Care Among Adults With Musculoskeletal Conditions.

PURPOSE: In the current payment paradigm, reimbursement is partially based on patient satisfaction scores. We sought to understand the relationship between prescription opioid use and satisfaction with care among adults who have musculoskeletal conditions. METHODS: We performed a cross-sectional study using nationally representative data from the 2008-2014 Medical Expenditure Panel Survey. We assessed whether prescription opioid use is associated with satisfaction with care among US adults who had musculoskeletal conditions. Specifically, using 5 key domains of satisfaction with care, we examined the association between opioid use (overall and according to the number of prescriptions received) and high satisfaction, defined as being in the top quartile of overall satisfaction ratings. RESULTS: Among 19,566 adults with musculoskeletal conditions, we identified 2,564 (13.1%) who were opioid users, defined as receiving 1 or more prescriptions in 2 six-month time periods. In analyses adjusted for sociodemographic characteristics and health status, compared with nonusers, opioid users were more likely to report high satisfaction with care (odds ratio = 1.32; 95% CI, 1.18-1.49). According to the level of use, a stronger association was noted with moderate opioid use (odds ratio = 1.55) and heavy opioid use (odds ratio = 1.43) (P <.001 for trend). CONCLUSIONS: Among patients with musculoskeletal conditions, those using prescription opioids are more likely to be highly satisfied with their care. Considering that emerging reimbursement models include patient satisfaction, future work is warranted to better understand this relationship.

The Stress Hormone Cortisol Enhances Interferon-υ-Mediated Proinflammatory Responses of Human Immune Cells.

BACKGROUND: Cortisol is a prototypical human stress hormone essential for life, yet the precise role of cortisol in the human stress response to injury or infection is still uncertain. Glucocorticoids (GCs) such as cortisol are widely understood to suppress inflammation and immunity. However, recent research shows that GCs also induce delayed immune effects manifesting as immune stimulation. In this study, we show that cortisol enhances the immune-stimulating effects of a prototypical proinflammatory cytokine, interferon-υ (IFN-υ). We tested the hypothesis that cortisol enhances IFN-υ-mediated proinflammatory responses of human mononuclear phagocytes (monocyte/macrophages [MOs]) stimulated by bacterial endotoxin (lipopolysaccharide [LPS]). METHODS: Human MOs were cultured for 18 hours with or without IFN-υ and/or cortisol before LPS stimulation. MO differentiation factors granulocyte-macrophage colony stimulating factor (GM-CSF) or M-CSF were added to separate cultures. We also compared the inflammatory response with an acute, 4-hour MO incubation with IFN-υ plus cortisol and LPS to a delayed 18-hour incubation with cortisol before LPS exposure. MO activation was assessed by interleukin-6 (IL-6) release and by multiplex analysis of pro- and anti-inflammatory soluble mediators. RESULTS: After the 18-hour incubation, we observed that cortisol significantly increased LPS-stimulated IL-6 release from IFN-υ-treated undifferentiated MOs. In GM-CSF-pretreated MOs, cortisol increased IFN-υ-mediated IL-6 release by >4-fold and release of the immune stimulant IFN-α2 (IFN-α2) by >3-fold, while suppressing release of the anti-inflammatory mediator, IL-1 receptor antagonist to 15% of control. These results were reversed by either the GC receptor antagonist RU486 or by an IFN-υ receptor type 1 antibody antagonist. Cortisol alone increased expression of the IFN-υ receptor type 1 on undifferentiated and GM-CSF-treated MOs. In contrast, an acute 4-hour incubation of MOs with IFN-υ and cortisol showed classic suppression of the IL-6 response to LPS. CONCLUSIONS: These results reveal a surprisingly robust proinflammatory interaction between the human stress response hormone cortisol and the immune activating cytokine IFN-υ. The results support an emerging physiological model with an adaptive role for cortisol, wherein acute release of cortisol suppresses early proinflammatory responses but also primes immune cells for an augmented response to a subsequent immune challenge. These findings have broad clinical implications and provide an experimental framework to examine individual differences, mechanisms, and translational implications of cortisol-enhanced immune responses in humans.

Association between sleep apnea and perioperative outcomes among patients undergoing shoulder arthroscopy.

PURPOSE: Sleep apnea is a recognized risk factor for adverse perioperative outcomes in total joint arthroplasty. Nevertheless, little is known about its impact on shoulder arthroscopy, which is a commonly performed ambulatory procedure. Our primary objective was to determine whether sleep apnea was associated with increases in complications and healthcare utilization in this setting. METHODS: We analyzed administrative data collected from 583 U.S. hospitals between 2010-2015 and identified a cohort of 128,932 patients who underwent shoulder arthroscopy. Using a cross-sectional study design, we examined the relationship between sleep apnea and perioperative outcomes including mortality, stroke, myocardial infarction, and pulmonary complications. We also examined a variety of health utilization outcomes. RESULTS: Among patients who underwent shoulder arthroscopy, approximately 6% (7,761 of 128,932) had the diagnosis of sleep apnea. The overall complication rate in these patients was 1.39% (95% confidence interval [CI], 1.33 to 1.45). In a crude analysis, sleep apnea was associated with increases in the majority of systemic complications. In adjusted analyses, sleep apnea was associated with a 4.95 (95% CI, 1.81 to 13.5) times greater odds of acute myocardial infarction and a 4.92 (95% CI, 2.72 to 8.9) times greater odds of pulmonary complications. Sleep apnea was also associated with increased odds of requiring postoperative ventilation, hospital admission, and intensive care unit admission. CONCLUSION: Sleep apnea is associated with an increased risk of complications and resource utilization in patients undergoing shoulder arthroscopy.

Glucocorticoids enhance the in vivo migratory response of human monocytes.

Glucocorticoids (GCs) are best known for their potent anti-inflammatory effects. However, an emerging model for glucocorticoid (GC) regulation of in vivo inflammation also includes a delayed, preparatory effect that manifests as enhanced inflammation following exposure to an inflammatory stimulus. When GCs are transiently elevated in vivo following exposure to a stressful event, this model proposes that a subsequent period of increased inflammatory responsiveness is adaptive because it enhances resistance to a subsequent stressor. In the present study, we examined the migratory response of human monocytes/macrophages following transient in vivo exposure to stress-associated concentrations of cortisol. Participants were administered cortisol for 6h to elevate in vivo cortisol levels to approximate those observed during major systemic stress. Monocytes in peripheral blood and macrophages in sterile inflammatory tissue (skin blisters) were studied before and after exposure to cortisol or placebo. We found that exposure to cortisol induced transient upregulation of monocyte mRNA for CCR2, the receptor for monocyte chemotactic protein-1 (MCP-1/CCL2) as well as for the chemokine receptor CX3CR1. At the same time, mRNA for the transcription factor IκBα was decreased. Monocyte surface expression of CCR2 but not CX3CR1 increased in the first 24h after cortisol exposure. Transient exposure to cortisol also led to an increased number of macrophages and neutrophils in fluid derived from a sterile inflammatory site in vivo. These findings suggest that the delayed, pro-inflammatory effects of cortisol on the human inflammatory responses may include enhanced localization of effector cells at sites of in vivo inflammation.

Wrong-site regional anesthesia: review and recommendations for prevention?

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: Wrong-site regional anesthetic procedures are considered never events. The purpose of this review is to describe the phenomenon of wrong-site regional anesthetic blocks and identify preventive strategies. RECENT FINDINGS: The incidence of wrong-site block may be as frequent as 7.5 per 10,000 procedures. Factors contributing to wrong-site block include physician distraction, patient position change, scheduling changes, inadequate documentation, poor communication, lack of surgical consent, site marking not visible, inadequate supervision, reduced situational awareness, fatigue, cognitive overload, perceived time pressure, delay from World Health sign-in to block performance and omission of block time-out or block time-out occurring before final patient positioning. The American Society of Regional Anesthesia and Pain Medicine have created a 9-point checklist for regional anesthesia procedures. SUMMARY: Preoperative site verification and surgical site marking are mandatory. A time-out should occur immediately before any invasive procedure. Confirming the correct patient and block site with a time-out should occur immediately before all regional anesthetic procedures. If more than one block is performed on one patient, it is recommended that time-out be repeated each time the patient position is changed or separated in time or performed by a different team. The anesthetic team should uniformly implement robust guidelines and checklists to reduce the occurrence of wrong-site regional anesthetic procedures.

Differences in the association between epidural analgesia and length of stay by surgery type: an observational study.

INTRODUCTION: Despite a decline in the use of thoracic epidural analgesia related in part to concerns for delayed discharge, it is unknown whether changes in length of stay (LOS) associated with epidural analgesia vary by surgery type. Therefore, we determined the degree to which the association between epidural analgesia (vs no epidural) and LOS differed by surgery type. METHODS: We conducted an observational study using data from 1747 patients who had either non-emergent open abdominal, thoracic, or vascular surgery at a single tertiary academic hospital. The primary outcome was hospital LOS and the incidence of a prolonged hospital LOS defined as 21 days or longer. Secondary endpoints included escalation of care, 30-day all-cause readmission, and reason for epidural not being placed. The association between epidural status and dichotomous endpoints was examined using logistic regression. RESULTS: Among the 1747 patients, 85.7% (1499) received epidural analgesia. 78% (1364) underwent abdominal, 11.5% (200) thoracic, and 10.5% (183) vascular surgeries. After adjustment for differences, receiving epidural analgesia (vs no epidural) was associated with a 45% reduction in the likelihood of a prolonged LOS (p<0.05). This relationship varied by surgery type: abdominal (OR 0.42, 95% CI 0.23 to 0.79, p<0.001), vascular (OR 1.66, 95% CI 0.17 to 16.1, p=0.14), and thoracic (OR 1.07, 95% CI 0.20 to 5.70, p=0.93). Among abdominal surgical patients, epidural analgesia was associated with a median decrease in LOS by 1.4 days and a 37% reduction in the likelihood of 30-day readmission (adjusted OR 0.63, 0.41 to 0.97, p<0.05). Among thoracic surgical patients, epidural analgesia was associated with a median increase in LOS by 3.2 days. CONCLUSIONS: The relationship between epidural analgesia and LOS appears to be different among different surgical populations.

How predictive is peer review for gauging impact? The association between reviewer rating scores, publication status, and article impact measured by citations in a pain subspecialty journal.

BACKGROUND: Peer review represents a cornerstone of the scientific process, yet few studies have evaluated its association with scientific impact. The objective of this study is to assess the association of peer review scores with measures of impact for manuscripts submitted and ultimately published. METHODS: 3173 manuscripts submitted to Regional Anesthesia & Pain Medicine (RAPM) between August 2018 and October 2021 were analyzed, with those containing an abstract included. Articles were categorized by topic, type, acceptance status, author demographics and open-access status. Articles were scored based on means for the initial peer review where each reviewer's recommendation was assigned a number: 5 for 'accept', 3 for 'minor revision', 2 for 'major revision' and 0 for 'reject'. Articles were further classified by whether any reviewers recommended 'reject'. Rejected articles were analyzed to determine whether they were subsequently published in an indexed journal, and their citations were compared with those of accepted articles when the impact factor was <1.4 points lower than RAPM's 5.1 impact factor. The main outcome measure was the number of Clarivate citations within 2 years from publication. Secondary outcome measures were Google Scholar citations within 2 years and Altmetric score. RESULTS: 422 articles met inclusion criteria for analysis. There was no significant correlation between the number of Clarivate 2-year review citations and reviewer rating score (r=0.038, p=0.47), Google Scholar citations (r=0.053, p=0.31) or Altmetric score (p=0.38). There was no significant difference in 2-year Clarivate citations between accepted (median (IQR) 5 (2-10)) and rejected manuscripts published in journals with impact factors >3.7 (median 5 (2-7); p=0.39). Altmetric score was significantly higher for RAPM-published papers compared with RAPM-rejected ones (median 10 (5-17) vs 1 (0-2); p<0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Peer review rating scores were not associated with citations, though the impact of peer review on quality and association with other metrics remains unclear.

Integrating mechanistic-based and classification-based concepts into perioperative pain management: an educational guide for acute pain physicians.

Chronic pain begins with acute pain. Physicians tend to classify pain by duration (acute vs chronic) and mechanism (nociceptive, neuropathic and nociplastic). Although this taxonomy may facilitate diagnosis and documentation, such categories are to some degree arbitrary constructs, with significant overlap in terms of mechanisms and treatments. In clinical practice, there are myriad different definitions for chronic pain and a substantial portion of chronic pain involves mixed phenotypes. Classification of pain based on acuity and mechanisms informs management at all levels and constitutes a critical part of guidelines and treatment for chronic pain care. Yet specialty care is often siloed, with advances in understanding lagging years behind in some areas in which these developments should be at the forefront of clinical practice. For example, in perioperative pain management, enhanced recovery protocols are not standardized and tend to drive treatment without consideration of mechanisms, which in many cases may be incongruent with personalized medicine and mechanism-based treatment. In this educational document, we discuss mechanisms and classification of pain as it pertains to commonly performed surgical procedures. Our goal is to provide a clinical reference for the acute pain physician to facilitate pain management decision-making (both diagnosis and therapy) in the perioperative period.

Peripheral nerve block anesthesia/analgesia for patients undergoing primary hip and knee arthroplasty: recommendations from the International Consensus on Anesthesia-Related Outcomes after Surgery (ICAROS) group based on a systematic review and meta-analysis of current literature.

BACKGROUND: Evidence-based international expert consensus regarding the impact of peripheral nerve block (PNB) use in total hip/knee arthroplasty surgery. METHODS: A systematic review and meta-analysis: randomized controlled and observational studies investigating the impact of PNB utilization on major complications, including mortality, cardiac, pulmonary, gastrointestinal, renal, thromboembolic, neurologic, infectious, and bleeding complications.Medline, PubMed, Embase, and Cochrane Library including Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, NHS Economic Evaluation Database, were queried from 1946 to August 4, 2020.The Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development, and Evaluation approach was used to assess evidence quality and for the development of recommendations. RESULTS: Analysis of 122 studies revealed that PNB use (compared with no use) was associated with lower ORs for (OR with 95% CIs) for numerous complications (total hip and knee arthroplasties (THA/TKA), respectively): cognitive dysfunction (OR 0.30, 95% CI 0.17 to 0.53/OR 0.52, 95% CI 0.34 to 0.80), respiratory failure (OR 0.36, 95% CI 0.17 to 0.74/OR 0.37, 95% CI 0.18 to 0.75), cardiac complications (OR 0.84, 95% CI 0.76 to 0.93/OR 0.83, 95% CI 0.79 to 0.86), surgical site infections (OR 0.55 95% CI 0.47 to 0.64/OR 0.86 95% CI 0.80 to 0.91), thromboembolism (OR 0.74, 95% CI 0.58 to 0.96/OR 0.90, 95% CI 0.84 to 0.96) and blood transfusion (OR 0.84, 95% CI 0.83 to 0.86/OR 0.91, 95% CI 0.90 to 0.92). CONCLUSIONS: Based on the current body of evidence, the consensus group recommends PNB use in THA/TKA for improved outcomes. RECOMMENDATION: PNB use is recommended for patients undergoing THA and TKA except when contraindications preclude their use. Furthermore, the alignment of provider skills and practice location resources needs to be ensured. Evidence level: moderate; recommendation: strong.

Settled science or unwarranted variation in local anesthetic dosing? An analysis from an International Registry of Regional Anesthesiology.

BACKGROUND: Variation in clinical practice is often considered unwarranted when it does not reflect patient preference or evidence-based medicine. Complications from regional anesthesia such as nerve injury and systemic toxicity are dose dependent. It is currently unclear if there is significant variation with the dosing of local anesthetics (LA) in the context of the modern practice of peripheral regional anesthesia. METHODS: We analyzed data from the International Registry of Regional Anesthesia that include prospective data on peripheral regional anesthesia procedures from 21 centers located around the world. Using data from years 2011 to 2017, our primary aim was to characterize the degree of variation in dosing of LA for the top 10 most commonly performed single injection peripheral nerve blocks. Our secondary aim was to identify potential drivers of this variation. RESULTS: Among the 26 457 peripheral blocks performed, mean (±SD) LA dose per block in ropivacaine equivalents was 125.1±51.2 mg and 1.6±0.7 for mg/kg. There was large variation across all block types, with the highest variation (measured by interdecile range) in axillary blocks (143.8 mg) and lowest in interscalene blocks (83.3 mg). In a regression analysis, dose was primarily associated with the hospital (Cohen's f=0.37) where the block was administered and block type (f=0.38), less so with age (f=0.02), weight (f=0.12), gender (f=0.05) or LA (f=0.17) used. Hospital site had strong impact on variation in LA dose (f=0.88). Variation was not significantly associated with number of blocks performed by hospital site. CONCLUSIONS: Large variation in dosing for regional blocks exists within and among hospitals, which is unlikely to be warranted. For many blocks, the variation of dosing is larger than the mean dose. Hospital site had strong impact on variation in LA dose and moderate impact on mean LA dose.

Characterizing Anesthetic Management and Perioperative Outcomes Associated with a Novel, Fusionless Scoliosis Surgery in Adolescents.

Anterior vertebral tethering (AVT) is a novel "fusionless" surgical approach to correct scoliosis. This study aims to characterize the anesthetic management and perioperative outcomes of AVT and traditional posterior spinal fusion (PSF) after establishing the technique at our institution. Scoliosis correction procedures performed in patients aged 10 to 21 years between January 2014 and August 2017 were identified in the electronic medical record. Patient characteristics and perioperative data about anesthetic use and pain management were extracted. Descriptive statistics were generated. Thirty-five patients undergoing AVT and 40 patients undergoing PSF met inclusion criteria. Preoperative fluoroscopy-guided epidural placement was used only in the AVT group (86%). The worst pain score on postoperative day (POD) 1 after AVT was a mean (SD) of 5.6 (2.3), with average pain scores on subsequent days ranging from 2.9 (1.2) to 3.6 (1.7). Total in-hospital opioid consumption in morphine milligram equivalents was 70 (76.6) for AVT and 193.4 (137.2) for PSF (P < .01). Discharge occurred on POD 4.4 (1.4) for AVT and POD 6.2 (1.9) for PSF (P < .01). The worst pain score on POD 1 for PSF was 6.6 (2.1), and average pain scores ranged from 3.7 (1.8) to 4.2 (1.8). These results help inform about the expected recovery profile and narcotic requirement after AVT and PSF.

Severe brachial plexopathy after an ultrasound-guided single-injection nerve block for total shoulder arthroplasty in a patient with multiple sclerosis.

DESPITE the known benefits of regional anesthesia for patients undergoing joint arthroplasty, the performance of peripheral nerve blocks in patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) remains controversial. MS has traditionally been described as an isolated disease of the central nervous system, without involvement of the peripheral nerves, and peripheral nerve blockade has been suggested to be safe. However, careful review of the literature suggests that MS may also be associated with involvement of the peripheral nervous system, challenging traditional teachings. There is a paucity of evidence with regard to safety in using peripheral nerve regional anesthesia in these patients. This makes it difficult to provide adequate "informed consent" to these patients. This case report describes a patient with MS who sustained a severe brachial plexopathy after a total shoulder arthroplasty during combined general anesthesia and interscalene nerve block.