Ultrasound-Assisted Mental Nerve Block and Pulsed Radiofrequency Treatment for Intractable Postherpetic Neuralgia: Three Case Studies.
- Author:
Hae Gyun PARK
1
;
Pyung Gul PARK
;
Won Joong KIM
;
Yong Hee PARK
;
Hyun KANG
;
Chong Wha BAEK
;
Yong Hun JUNG
;
Young Cheol WOO
;
Gill Hoi KOO
;
Hwa Yong SHIN
Author Information
- Publication Type:Case Report
- Keywords: mental nerve; postherpetic neuralgia; pulsed radiofrequency treatment; ultrasound
- MeSH: Humans; Nerve Block*; Neuralgia, Postherpetic*; Pulsed Radiofrequency Treatment*; Ultrasonography
- From:The Korean Journal of Pain 2014;27(1):81-85
- CountryRepublic of Korea
- Language:English
- Abstract: Postherpetic neuralgia (PHN) is one of the most difficult pain syndromes to treat. Invasive treatments may be considered when patients fail to obtain adequate pain relief from noninvasive treatment approaches. Here, we present three cases of PHN in the mandibular branch treated with ultrasound-assisted mental nerve block and pulsed radiofrequency treatment. None of the patients had adequate pain relief from the medical therapy, so we performed the mental nerve block on the affected side under ultrasound assistance. Two patients showed satisfactory pain relief continuously over 12 months without any further interventions, whereas one patient only had short-term pain relief. For the patient had short-term pain relief we performed pulsed radiofrequency treatment (PRFT) on the left mental nerve under ultrasound assistance. After PRFT, the patient had adequate pain relief for 6 months and there was no need for further management.
