Peripheral Nerves US Clinical Trial
Official title:
Anatomical Description of the Sciatic Nerve Via a Lateral Mid-Thigh Approach Using Ultrasound
Sciatic nerve blocks are frequently used for anesthesia or analgesia for surgery of the lower legs. Currently, if ultrasound is used to find the sciatic nerve, the leg must be raised to locate the nerve with the ultrasound probe on the back of the thigh. In pediatric surgery, the patients are anesthetized (asleep) before the block is given. It is difficult for one person to administer the sciatic nerve block using this method. We would like to identify the sciatic nerve using ultrasound on the side of the thigh and its location to the adjacent structures.
The sciatic nerve block is frequently used for anesthesia or analgesia for surgery of the
lower extremities. Ultrasound-guided sciatic nerve blocks performed at the lateral
mid-femoral level have been successfully described with subjects in the supine position and
the lower limb elevated in order to accommodate the ultrasound probe against the posterior
aspect of the thigh. In the pediatric setting in which nerve blocks are commonly performed
with the patient anesthetized rather than awake, we find this technique to be unwieldy as a
single-operator technique. Using a more ergonomic approach that has not been previously
described, we plan to identify and describe the sciatic nerve with the ultrasound positioned
against the lateral aspect of the thigh. We hope to describe the appearance of the sciatic
nerve and its location in relation to adjacent anatomic structures using this modified
approach.
This a prospective cross-sectional study of 40 pediatric subjects 11-17 years of age. Three
ultrasound images of the sciatic nerve will be obtained via the lateral mid-thigh approach
in 40 pediatric patients scheduled to undergo sciatic nerve block - the first image prior to
placement of the block, the second after the nerve is located by the stimulating needle and
the third after the injection of local anesthetic.
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Observational Model: Case-Only, Time Perspective: Prospective