Image Guidance in Pain Medicine

Abstract

US has brought a new perspective in interventional pain medicine. Its use may render procedures more effective, safer or, in specific circumstances, feasible. For certain applications of US there is no alternative imaging technique. This is mostly the result of the unique ability of US to visualize nerves of small size. For other applications, US is an increasingly powerful competitor of fluoroscopy, CT or blind approaches. Some cautions apply to the enthusiasm generated by the use of US. In the last years, several papers on USguided blocks have been published. Most of them deal with techniques, i.e. they describe how to perform a block with US guidance. However, they do not demonstrate that US is better than alternative imaging or even blind techniques.