Continuous blockade of both brachial plexus with ropivacaine in phantom pain: a case report

A 39-year-old patient developed phantom pain after amputation of both upper arms following a burn injury. The pain did not respond to naproxen, morphine, carbamazepine, amitriptyline, calcitonin or transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS). At the 39th postoperative day an axillary catheter was placed on the right side. as well as an interscalene catheter on the left. Ropivacaine 0.2% was infused, starting with a rate of 4 ml/h, that was increased to 6 ml/h during the subsequent 6 days. Within 20 min of catheter placement complete pain relief was achieved. The patient did not need any other analgesics and remained painfree for 7 months. Neither motor block, nor any other side effects occurred during the infusion of ropivacaine 0.2%. Thus, the patient not only received analgesia, but also got an effective treatment of established phantom pain. A similar approach with bupivacaine may not have been feasible, because of the possibility of toxic side effects, Ropivacaine is a long-acting local anaesthetic which is less toxic than bupivacaine and has the additional advantage of producing less motor-blockade in the concentration used, so the patient was able to move actively without experiencing any pain. (C) 1998 international Association for the Study of Pain. Published by Elsevier Science B.V.