DE JONG RH Axillary block of the brachial plexus. Anesthesiology. 1961 Mar-Apr;22:215-25.
Fredrickson MJ, Ball CM, Dalgleish AJ, Stewart AW, Short TG A prospective randomized comparison of ultrasound and neurostimulation as needle end points for interscalene catheter placement. Anesth Analg. 2009 May;108(5):1695-700. doi: 10.1213/ane.0b013e31819c29b8.
Gautier P, Vandepitte C, Ramquet C, DeCoopman M, Xu D, Hadzic A The minimum effective anesthetic volume of 0.75% ropivacaine in ultrasound-guided interscalene brachial plexus block. Anesth Analg. 2011 Oct;113(4):951-5. doi: 10.1213/ANE.0b013e31822b876f. Epub 2011 Aug 4.
Groban L Central nervous system and cardiac effects from long-acting amide local anesthetic toxicity in the intact animal model. Reg Anesth Pain Med. 2003 Jan-Feb;28(1):3-11. Review.
Imasogie N, Ganapathy S, Singh S, Armstrong K, Armstrong P A prospective, randomized, double-blind comparison of ultrasound-guided axillary brachial plexus blocks using 2 versus 4 injections. Anesth Analg. 2010 Apr 1;110(4):1222-6. doi: 10.1213/ANE.0b013e3181cb6791. Epub 2010 Feb 8.
Mather LE, Copeland SE, Ladd LA Acute toxicity of local anesthetics: underlying pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic concepts. Reg Anesth Pain Med. 2005 Nov-Dec;30(6):553-66. Review.
Ponrouch M, Bouic N, Bringuier S, Biboulet P, Choquet O, Kassim M, Bernard N, Capdevila X Estimation and pharmacodynamic consequences of the minimum effective anesthetic volumes for median and ulnar nerve blocks: a randomized, double-blind, controlled comparison between ultrasound and nerve stimulation guidance. Anesth Analg. 2010 Oct;111(4):1059-64. doi: 10.1213/ANE.0b013e3181eb6372. Epub 2010 Aug 12.
Renes SH, van Geffen GJ, Rettig HC, Gielen MJ, Scheffer GJ Minimum effective volume of local anesthetic for shoulder analgesia by ultrasound-guided block at root C7 with assessment of pulmonary function. Reg Anesth Pain Med. 2010 Nov-Dec;35(6):529-34. doi: 10.1097/AAP.0b013e3181fa1190.
Riazi S, Carmichael N, Awad I, Holtby RM, McCartney CJ Effect of local anaesthetic volume (20 vs 5 ml) on the efficacy and respiratory consequences of ultrasound-guided interscalene brachial plexus block. Br J Anaesth. 2008 Oct;101(4):549-56. doi: 10.1093/bja/aen229. Epub 2008 Aug 4.
Thompson GE, Rorie DK Functional anatomy of the brachial plexus sheaths. Anesthesiology. 1983 Aug;59(2):117-22.
Interventional studies are often prospective and are specifically tailored to evaluate direct impacts of treatment or preventive measures on disease.
Observational studies are often retrospective and are used to assess potential causation in exposure-outcome relationships and therefore influence preventive methods.
Expanded access is a means by which manufacturers make investigational new drugs available, under certain circumstances, to treat a patient(s) with a serious disease or condition who cannot participate in a controlled clinical trial.
Clinical trials are conducted in a series of steps, called phases - each phase is designed to answer a separate research question.
Phase 1: Researchers test a new drug or treatment in a small group of people for the first time to evaluate its safety, determine a safe dosage range, and identify side effects.
Phase 2: The drug or treatment is given to a larger group of people to see if it is effective and to further evaluate its safety.
Phase 3: The drug or treatment is given to large groups of people to confirm its effectiveness, monitor side effects, compare it to commonly used treatments, and collect information that will allow the drug or treatment to be used safely.
Phase 4: Studies are done after the drug or treatment has been marketed to gather information on the drug's effect in various populations and any side effects associated with long-term use.
