Does a Positive Response to Transforaminal Epidural Steroid Injection Identify Patients Who Can Avoid Surgery for Two Years?

Background: Transforaminal epidural steroid injection (TFESI) is widely used to manage lumbar radiculopathy. In clinical settings, patients often undergo repeated transforaminal epidural injections with or without steroid administration.

Objectives: To examine whether a positive response to TFESI at the first month, can in clinical settings, identify patients with radiculopathy who can avoid surgery for two years.

Prevalence and associated factors of disability in patients with chronic pain: An observational study.

The primary treatment goal of patients experiencing chronic pain has shifted from pain reduction to functional status improvement. However, the prevalence of disability and its associated factors in patients with chronic pain remain unknown.Individuals aged ≥50 years who visited the Pain Center at Nara Medical University with chronic pain from June 2019 to May 2020 were eligible for enrollment.

The short-term effect of COVID-19 pandemic on disability, pain intensity, psychological status, and exercise habits in patients with chronic pain.

Purpose: The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has affected the lives of people worldwide. The first declaration of a state of emergency in Japan, based on the Act on Special Measures for the Prevention and Control of the Novel Coronavirus, was issued from 16 April 2020 to 14 May 2020 to reduce person-to-person contact. Restrictions on going out, participating in community activities, and visiting hospitals were in place.

Feasibility, reliability, and validity of the 12-item World Health Organization Disability Assessment Schedule 2.0 in patients attending the pain clinic.

Purpose: In the cohort of patients attending pain clinic, the primary goal has been shifting from pain reduction to improving activities of daily living and functional status. The 12-item World Health Organization Disability Assessment Schedule 2.0 (WHODAS 2.

The ultrasound-guided nerve blocks of abdominal wall contributed to anesthetic management of cholecystectomy in a patient with Becker muscular dystrophy without using muscle relaxants.

Becker muscular dystrophy (BMD) is a progressive neuromuscular disorder caused by mutations in the dystrophin gene. The sensitivity to non-depolarizing muscle relaxant in a patient with muscle dystrophy is reportedly higher than that in normal individuals, and the duration of the effect is known to be prolonged. In this report, we present the case of a 58-year-old man with BMD who underwent laparoscopic cholecystectomy for symptomatic cholelithiasis under total intravenous anesthesia without the use of muscle-relaxant drugs and supplemented with regional anesthesia.

Transforaminal epidural blood patch for intractable spontaneous cerebrospinal fluid leak: a case report.

Background: Epidural blood patch (EBP) is a recognized treatment for spontaneous cerebrospinal fluid leak (SCFL) and is typically administered by the interlaminar approach. Here, we report a case of a patient in whom SCFL failed to resolve after three applications of interlaminar EBPs before finally being successfully treated with transforaminal EBP.

Case Presentation: We report a case of a 41-year-old female with a definitive diagnosis of SCFL according to computed tomography (CT) myelography.

[Unilateral Thoracic Paravertebral Block for Effective Control of Pain : A Case Report of a Patient with Esophageal Cancer and Cirrhosis of the Liver.].

We report a case in which unilateral thoracic para- vertebral block was used to effectively control pain in a 78-year-old male patient with Child's A liver cirrhosis and esophageal cancer. Epidural anesthesia was con- sidered risky in this case because of the low platelet count from cirrhosis. Therefore, we performed a unilat- eral thoracic paravertebral block and cannulation under general anesthesia.

[Retrospective evaluation of predictors and frequency of hypotension in hypertensive patients after induction of general anesthesia].

Background: It is reported that hypotension during general anesthesia is associated with adverse outcomes in patients having both noncardiac and cardiac surgery. The present retrospective study was undertaken to evaluate the incidence and the predictors of hypotension after induction of general anesthesia (GA) until the start of operation.

Methods: After the IRB approval, 157 patients with hypertension who had undergone surgery under general anesthesia were enrolled.