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Cervical facet joint (CFJ) syndrome is a common cause of neck pain. For its diagnosis and treatment, CFJ injection with arthrogram is generally performed. This study aimed to investigate the frequency of extra-CFJ flow on CFJ arthrograms during injections and its differences according to age, sex, and cervical vertebral level. We analyzed 760 CFJ arthrograms administrated to 208 patients diagnosed with CFJ syndrome. Arthrograms at each vertebral level were collected to evaluate the normal CFJ and extra-CFJ flow. The primary and secondary outcomes were frequency of extra-CFJ flow according to cervical vertebral level, age, and sex and according to pairwise cervical levels, respectively. Extra-CFJ flow at the cervical spine occurred during 179 injections, and the overall incidence was 3.3-36.2% at different cervical levels. The incidence of extra-CFJ flow at each cervical vertebral level according to age and sex was not significant. Extra-CFJ flow was the highest at C6 and C7, but there was no statistical significance. Extra-CFJ flow was higher at lower vertebral levels (C5-C7) than at upper levels (C3 and C4). Additional clinical studies and anatomical evaluations are needed to support its clinical value and enable the development of new injection techniques.
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[This corrects the article on p. 254 in vol. 28, PMID: 26495080.].
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BACKGROUND: Pain medicine often requires medico-legal involvement, even though diagnosis and treatments have improved considerably. Multiple guidelines for pain physicians contain many recommendations regarding interventional treatment. Unfortunately, no definite treatment guidelines exist because there is no complete consensus among individual guidelines. Pain intervention procedures are widely practiced and highly associated with adverse events and complications. However, a comprehensive, systemic review of medical-dispute cases (MDCs) in Korea has not yet been reported. The purpose of this article is to analyze the frequency and type of medical dispute activity undertaken by pain specialists in Korea. METHODS: Data on medical disputes cases were collected through the Korea Medical Association mutual aid and through a private medical malpractice liability insurance company. Data regarding the frequency and type of MDCs, along with brief case descriptions, were obtained. RESULTS: Pain in the lumbar region made up a major proportion of MDCs and compensation costs. Infection, nerve injury, and diagnosis related cases were the most major contents of MDCs. Only a small proportion of cases involved patient death or unconsciousness, but compensation costs were the highest. CONCLUSIONS: More systemic guidelines and recommendations on interventional pain management are needed, especially those focused on medico-legal cases. Complications arising from pain management procedures and treatments may be avoided by physicians who have the required knowledge and expertise regarding anatomy and pain intervention procedures and know how to recognize procedural aberrations as soon as they occur.
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Cervical epidural steroid injection is indicated for radicular symptoms with or without axial neck pain. Complications are rare but can be serious. Here, we report the case of a 54-year-old man with cervical radicular pain who was treated with cervical epidural steroid injection. Injection was administered twice under fluoroscopic guidance with the loss-of-resistance technique using air to confirm the epidural space. After the second procedure, the patient complained of severe persistent headache and was diagnosed with pneumocephalus on brain computed tomography. The patient returned home without any neurological complication, after a few days of conservative treatment. Though, a fluoroscopic guidance cervical epidural injection is also known to diminish the risk of complications. Physicians should always keep in mind that it does not guarantee safety, particularly in the cervical region, related to its anatomical considerations.
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The transforaminal epidural injection (TFEI) has been preferred in many cases because it can deliver the injected dose of medication closer to the nerve root and better facilitate ventral epidural flow compared to other methods. However, in patients with deformities not demonstrated on fluoroscopic imaging, the needle may enter unwanted locations. We treated two cases of intradiscal injection of contrast dye, during the TFEI, in patients with lumbar disc herniation.
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Breast surgery is a common procedure performed in women. Many women who undergo breast surgery suffer from ill-defined pain syndromes. A nerve block is used in the treatment of the acute and chronic pain, but the effectiveness of the treatment has been limited because of its short duration. Recently, the advent of pulsed radiofrequency lesioning (PRF) has proved a successful treatment for chronic refractory pain involving the peripheral nerves. We experienced a case of a 52-year-old female patient complaining of chronic breast neuropathic pain after breast reduction, which was relieved after PRF lesioning of the 4th thoracic spinal nerve and its root.
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BACKGROUND: When applying pulsed radiofrequency on dorsal root ganglia for treating chronic lower back pain, maximum efficiency can be expected when a needle is placed 1-2 cm peripheral to the dorsal root ganglion. The object of this study is to analyze images taken after adding contrast to transforaminal epidural injection, categorize root ganglia according to anatomical position, and provide a reference for efficient needle positioning in applying pulsed radiofrequency on dorsal root ganglia. METHODS: From January 2008 to January 2009, 457 patients who visited our hospital for root pain or radiculopathy were treated with transforaminal epidural injection on the nerve roots based on the dermatome of the painful area. Anteroposterior views were taken after injection of contrast. A virtual line was made by connecting the internal and external parts of the spinal pedicle from the contrast images. Then the dorsal root ganglia were categorized as intraspinal (IS), intraforaminal (IF), or extraforaminal (EF). RESULTS: In the fourth lumbar spine, dorsal root ganglia positions were 48% IF, 41% IS, and 6% EF. In the fifth lumbar spine, dorsal root ganglia positions were 75% IF, 10% IS, and 6% EF. In the first sacral spine, dorsal root ganglia locations were 8% IF and 83% IS. CONCLUSIONS: Positional categorization of dorsal root ganglia according to contrast images was proven to be good anatomical references for effective radiofrequency or blocking of dorsal root ganglia.