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Old 07-18-2013, 02:06 AM
anonymous730 anonymous730 is offline
Junior Member
 
Join Date: Jun 2013
Posts: 13
10 yr Member
anonymous730 anonymous730 is offline
Junior Member
 
Join Date: Jun 2013
Posts: 13
10 yr Member
Default Sympathetic blocks in neck

An odd question-my new primary physician assigne by workers comp, (who has legal issues outside if a few states causing him to have his licensed permanently suspended from anesthesia to having sexual relations with a unstable patient,etc), has mentioned to me on two occasions something odd about sympathetic blocks.

I had 4 sympathetic blocks in my neck, stellate ganglia blocks, to help with my RSD in my right arm with my previous pain specialist. My new pm has said to me that he thinks the blocks I had were too low and that the area where it was given, low on my front neck, only effects the hand not the shoulder and arm and that there are other higher up ganglia that can be injected.

I had educated myself on blocks before I had then done being that I work in the medical field, (although with animals not humans lol), and everything I read about stellate ganglion blocks pointed to the area where I received them-just like the pictures show. When I asked the new pm again about what/where he was talking about, saying that I only knew of one stellate ganglia, he wasn't really able to give me an exact name but stumbled on it beig called the sympathetic ganglia?? He basically said there are three ganglia along the cervical
neck. I just have not been able to find out any info on other areas to inject for the shoulder in the neck region-in fact-every website points to the stellate ganglion being the area to inject or an upper extremity.

The reason we were discussing this is because instead of giving me a referral to a specialist as a pm should, he wanted to try as treat me first by trying a higher block and then performing pulsed radio frequency-although he explained he would charge it to my workers comp ins as radiofrequency ablation since as he stated "it is a newer procedure so most insurances won't cover it".

I am very confused by the information he has given me and trust me I am not pursuing a procedures with him at this time. I am just wondering if anyone knows of either of these two things? Am I totally uneducated and judging my dr too quickly? I do know that although illegal, many drs bill insurance companies incorrectly on purpose to get paid so that is not main concern-although I would not feel comfortable being put under on drugs knowing that although we discussed doing a specific procedure, he can do the other without my auth since the paperwork will say so and I would never know until after a point of no return. My main questions are: stellate ganglion-multiple injection sites? Only does hand? And has anyone had this pulsed radio frequency procedure?

Thank you in advance
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"Thanks for this!" says:
AintSoBad (07-18-2013)