19 May Relieving Knee or Hip Pain With the Fascia Iliac Block
Most of the pain-relieving treatments we provide at Lone Star Pain Medicine are considered injection therapies. It’s because we use needles to inject medications designed to scale back inflammation, block pain signals, or provide general analgesia. One in every of the newer treatments now we have added is the fascia iliac block.
The fascia iliac block is used primarily to alleviate pain within the knee or hip. Even though it is most frequently really helpful to take care of postsurgical pain, it might be really helpful under other circumstances as well. The procedure might be practiced as a one-off outpatient procedure or as an IV therapy that gives continuous pain relief over a major time frame.
Anesthesia for the Femoral Nerve
This particular procedure normally targets the femoral nerve, which is positioned within the thigh. It sometimes targets the lateral cutaneous or obturator nerves as well. For the needs of this post, we’ll concentrate on the femoral nerve on account of its association with postsurgical hip and knee pain.
Fascia iliac block is designed to wash the femoral nerve in anesthesia. In a one-off procedure, the doctor inserts a needle and guides it to the final area of the femoral nerve. Anesthesia is injected and the needle is removed.
A health care provider can perform the injection with or without the assistance of ultrasound. When ultrasound is utilized, the doctor desires to be more exact about needle placement. Ultrasound helps her or him locate the very best possible injection site.
For Long-Term Pain Relief
A patient recovering from knee or hip surgery might have long-term pain relief in the times immediately following surgery. In such cases, the fascia iliac block might be administered via IV therapy. Relatively than a single injection with one dose of anesthesia, a cannula is used to insert an IV tube and direct it toward the femoral nerve.
The tube is connected to an IV bag that delivers a gradual stream of anesthesia to the location. So long as the anesthesia drip continues, the patient experiences pain relief. At such time because the patient’s doctor feels the IV is not any longer obligatory, the tube is removed and the location bandaged.
A Secure and Effective Procedure
Although fascia iliac block is a relatively recent procedure in pain medicine, it is taken into account protected and effective. A pain medicine doctor can normally administer the procedure with none advanced training. The one-off procedure performed with a needle might be accomplished in only a couple of minutes.
When it comes to uncomfortable side effects, there are too many. Most patients will experience some minor discomfort during needle insertion. Those that undergo the IV therapy may find the tube a bit uncomfortable.
Post procedure, there could also be some swelling and bruising for a couple of days. Some people experience minor pain on the injection site and, as at all times, infection is a risk. Patients should inform their doctors immediately in the event that they show signs of infection within the hours or days following the procedure.
We Can Talk About It
Although the fascia iliac block is often reserved to alleviate postsurgical pain within the hip or knee, it does offer applications for other sorts of hip and knee pain. When you think you is likely to be candidate for this procedure, let’s sit down and discuss it.
Meeting with one in every of our pain specialists can enable you to higher understand this procedure, how it really works, and the way it would help. Our doctors are able to answer your questions and offer qualified advice. If it seems that fascia iliac block is just not appropriate in your condition, we are able to recommend other treatments.
