Non-Fellowship regional anesthesia training and assessment: an international Delphi study on a consensus curriculum.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: While there are several published recommendations and guidelines for trainees undertaking subspecialty Fellowships in regional anesthesia, a similar document describing a core regional anesthesia curriculum for non-fellowship trainees is less well defined. We aimed to produce an international consensus for the training and teaching of regional anesthesia that is applicable for the majority of worldwide anesthesiologists. METHODS: This anonymous, electronic Delphi study was conducted over two rounds and distributed to current and immediate past (within 5 years) directors of regional anesthesia training worldwide. The steering committee formulated an initial list of items covering nerve block techniques, learning objectives and skills assessment and volume of practice, relevant to a non-fellowship regional anesthesia curriculum. Participants scored these items in order of importance using a 10-point Likert scale, with free-text feedback. Strong consensus items were defined as highest importance (score ≥8) by ≥70% of all participants. RESULTS: 469 participants/586 invitations (80.0% response) scored in round 1, and 402/469 participants (85.7% response) scored in round 2. Participants represented 66 countries. Strong consensus was reached for 8 core peripheral and neuraxial blocks and 17 items describing learning objectives and skills assessment. Volume of practice for peripheral blocks was uniformly 16-20 blocks per anatomical region, while ≥50 neuraxial blocks were considered minimum. CONCLUSIONS: This international consensus study provides specific information for designing a non-fellowship regional anesthesia curriculum. Implementation of a standardized curriculum has benefits for patient care through improving quality of training and quality of nerve blocks.

Retrospective Study of the Analgesic Effect of Sacroiliac Joint Radiofrequency Denervation.

BACKGROUND: Interventional radiofrequency (RF) ablation techniques are indicated when an adequate effect is not obtained with conservative measures. OBJECTIVES: The primary objective of this study was to evaluate pain relief after RF denervation of the sacroiliac joint. The secondary objective was to evaluate pain intensity and relief duration. STUDY DESIGN: The study was retrospective. SETTING: The study was conducted at Vera Cruz Hospital, Campinas, Brazil. METHODS: Data were collected from the medical records of patients undergoing RF denervation for low back pain originating in the sacroiliac joint, from January 2015 to December 2017. There were 78 patients studied, between 18 and 65 years old, of both genders, ASA I or II, who underwent knee arthroscopic meniscectomy. The patients were submitted to denervation of sacroiliac joint by 3 types of RF (conventional, pulsed, and cooled). The following parameters were evaluated, number of patients who obtained ? 50% pain relief; pain intensity, measured using the visual analog scale (before the procedure and 15, 30, 90 and 180 days after, performed by the same evaluator); and the use of complementary analgesic for 2 weeks. RESULTS: Of the 78 included patients, 56 (71.8%) underwent conventional RF, 9 (11.5%) underwent pulsed RF, and 13 (16.7%) underwent cooled RF. There were losses to follow-up including 40 patients who underwent conventional RF, 5 who underwent pulsed RF, and 12 who underwent cooled RF, who were retained for 6 months. There was significant pain relief with the three types of RF for up to 6 months of follow-up, with no difference among the types. After 6 months, 90.2% of patients who underwent conventional RF, 100% who underwent pulsed RF, and 91.7% who underwent cooled RF maintained ≥ 50% pain relief. Complementary analgesics were used by 95% of the patients who underwent conventional RF, 80% who underwent pulsed RF, and 91% who underwent cooled RF 2 weeks after the procedure. There were mild adverse effects, such as edema, hematoma, and local pain, without complications. LIMITATIONS: As for limitations, the number of pulsed and cooled RF is low and in a retrospective study some data may be missing, especially from follow-up. CONCLUSIONS: RF denervation of the sacroiliac joint is effective and promotes a long-lasting analgesic effect.