title: A randomized clinical trial of nerve block to manage end-stage pancreatic cancerous pain.
abstract: Pain control is the most difficult puzzle in patients with terminal pancreatic cancerous pain. Many methods in clinical practice fail in 20 ~ 50% of patients. The present study aims to explore the effect of nerve block on patients with end-stage pancreatic cancerous pain. In this study, 100 subjects with end-stage pancreatic cancerous pain were enrolled and randomly assigned into two groups: 68 in nerve block group (N) and 32 in sham group (S). One group was treated with nerve block and the other group with sham procedure as controls. The pain score (by visual analog scale (VAS)), pain duration, reduction of other analgesic medications, and quality of life (with questionnaire QLQ) were evaluated before and 3 months after interventions. Comparisons were performed between before and after intervention in nerve block group and sham group. The results indicated that compared with sham group, the subjects in nerve block group had significant reduction with pain score, pain duration, and other analgesic medications, as well as improvement of quality of life (P < 0.05, respectively). In conclusion, nerve block is an effective method for treating patients with end-stage pancreatic cancerous pain.
authors.affiliation: Department of General Surgery, The First Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, Suzhou, China.
authors.forename: Ling
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Gao
authors.forename: Yi-jin
authors.initials: YJ
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.forename: Hai-yan
authors.initials: HY
authors.lastname: Xu
authors.forename: Jin
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Zhou
authors.forename: Han
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Hong
authors.forename: Yun-liang
authors.initials: YL
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: De-chun
authors.initials: DC
authors.lastname: Li
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000779:Anesthetics, Local / Q000627:therapeutic use; D002045:Bupivacaine / Q000627:therapeutic use; D002447:Celiac Plexus / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000601:surgery; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009407:Nerve Block / Q000379:methods*; D010146:Pain / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000209:etiology* / Q000601:surgery; D010147:Pain Measurement; D010190:Pancreatic Neoplasms / Q000150:complications*; D011788:Quality of Life
chemical_list: D000779:Anesthetics, Local; D002045:Bupivacaine