RESUMEN
Management of nonobstetric pain in the pregnant patient presents unique challenges related to transplacental fetal exposure to opioids and the subsequent risk of neonatal withdrawal syndrome. We present the case of a pregnant patient suffering from the pain of a progressively enlarging thoracoabdominal sarcoma. Epidural analgesia (using local anesthetics with minimal opioid) was utilized over a span of weeks to manage oncologic pain, limiting fetal opioid exposure and culminating in the birth of a healthy infant. While nonobstetric abdominal pain during pregnancy is not that uncommon, neoplastic abdominal pain does appear to be rare. Combined local anesthetic and opioid continuous epidural infusion should be considered a viable option in the pain management approach to obstetric patients with nonobstetric pain associated with malignancy.
RESUMEN
Raynaud's syndrome has been treated medically and invasively, sometimes with regional anesthesia leading up to sympathectomy. We demonstrate that regional anesthesia was in this case a useful technique that can allow some patients to find temporary but significant relief from symptoms of Raynaud's syndrome exacerbation. We present a 43-year-old woman with Raynaud's syndrome secondary to lupus who was treated with bilateral popliteal nerve block catheters for ischemic pain and necrosis of her feet; this led to almost immediate resolution of her pain and return of color and function of her feet. While medical management should continue to be a front-line treatment for Raynaud's syndrome, regional anesthesia can be useful in providing rapid dissipation of symptoms and may thus serve as a viable option for short-term management of this syndrome.
