Robards, Christopher B.

Objective: To evaluate the efficacy of regional anesthesia (RA) in enabling arteriovenous fistula (AVF) creation in patients with small-caliber veins who would typically receive arteriovenous grafts (AVG), and to compare access outcomes between AVF and AVG cohorts. Methods: We conducted a retrospective analysis of a prospectively maintained database from 2018 through 2024 involving patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) requiring access creation. Eligible patients were those aged 18 years or older with inadequate veins for AVF creation based on initial ultrasound vein mapping. All patients underwent RA prior to the access creation and had a repeated intraoperative vein mapping at least 30 min after RA. Patients whose veins were sufficiently dilated and met the criteria for AVF creation underwent AVF formation; otherwise, an AVG was created. Outcomes included access maturation, patency rates, access failure, abandonment, and mortality. Statistical analysis was performed using R software, with significance set at p < 0.05. Results: Of the 106 patients, 67 (63.2%) underwent AVF creation post-RA due to sufficient vein dilation, while 39 (36.8%) received AVGs. Baseline vein diameters and comorbidities were comparable between groups. AVF maturation was achieved in 83.6% of AVF patients, with longer times to successful cannulation compared to AVG (median 187.0 vs 80.0 days, p = 0.037). Kaplan-Meier analysis revealed no difference in primary patency ( p = 0.97), but AVF patients had superior primary assisted ( p = 0.015) and secondary patency ( p = 0.033), and lower access failure rates ( p = 0.034) compared to AVG patients. Access abandonment and mortality rates did not differ significantly between groups. Conclusions: RA-induced venodilation enables the use of veins previously deemed inadequate for AVF creation, leading to improved access outcomes compared to AVG placement. Implementing RA may increase AVF utilization and enhance patient outcomes in hemodialysis access surgery.

Vasa nervorum are the blood vessels which supply adequate oxygen to peripheral nerves. Various vascular pathologies produce inflammatory changes compromising the blood flow through the vasa nervorum. We describe a patient with peripheral vascular disease admitted for below knee amputation who was found to have hypertrophied vasa nervorum in the ipsilateral femoral and popliteal sciatic nerves.

AbstractIntroductionRadiologically inserted gastrostomy (RIG) placement in patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) carries risks related to periprocedural sedation and analgesia. To minimize these risks, we used a paravertebral block (PVB) technique for RIG placement.MethodsWe retrospectively reviewed patients with ALS undergoing RIG placement under PVB between 2013 and 2017.ResultsNinety‐nine patients with ALS underwent RIG placement under PVB. Median (range) age was 66 (28 to 86) years, ALS Functional Rating Scale—Revised score was 27 (6 to 45), and forced vital capacity was 47% (8%–79%) at time of RIG placement. Eighty‐five (85.9%) patients underwent RIG placement as outpatients, with a mean postanesthesia care unit stay of 2.3 hours. The readmission rate was 4% at both 1 and 30 days postprocedure.DiscussionPVB for RIG placement has a low rate of adverse events and provides effective periprocedural analgesia in patients with ALS, the majority of whom can be treated as outpatients.

Gastric ultrasound is emerging as a tool that can be used to assess gastric content and volume in patients with an unknown fasting history. This information can impact the choice of anesthetic technique or the timing of surgery due to the presumed risk of aspiration. Currently, no data are available regarding the use of gastric ultrasound for patients who have had prior gastric operations, despite the increasing number of patients undergoing bariatric surgery. Our experience suggests that a patient with a prior Roux-en-Y gastric bypass may present with altered anatomy, rendering gastric ultrasound an ineffective technique to assess the volume of ingested food or liquid.

We present a standardized method for using four-dimensional ultrasound (4D US) guidance for peripheral nerve blocks. 4D US allows for needle tracking in multiple planes simultaneously and accurate measurement of the local anesthetic volume surrounding the nerve following injection. Additionally, the morphology and proximity of local anesthetic spread around the target nerve is clearly seen with the described technique. This method provides additional spatial information in real time compared to standard two-dimensional ultrasound.

Background. There are a variety of techniques for targeting placement of an infraclavicular blockade; these include eliciting paresthesias, nerve stimulation, and 2-dimensional (2D) ultrasound (US) guidance. Current 2D US allows direct visualization of a “flat” image of the advancing needle and neurovascular structures but without the ability to extensively analyze multidimensional data and allow for real-time manipulation. Three-dimensional (3D) ultrasonography has gained popularity and usefulness in many clinical specialties such as obstetrics and cardiology. We describe some of the potential clinical applications of 3D US in regional anesthesia.Methods. This case represents an infraclavicular catheter placement facilitated by 3D US, which demonstrates 360-degree spatial relationships of the entire anatomic region.Results. The block needle, peripheral nerve catheter, and local anesthetic diffusion were observed in multiple planes of view without manipulation of the US probe.Conclusion. Advantages of 3D US may include the ability to confirm correct needle and catheter placement prior to the injection of local anesthetic. The spread of local anesthetic along the length of the nerve can be easily observed while manipulating the 3D images in real-time by simply rotating the trackball on the US machine to provide additional information that cannot be identified with 2D US alone.