Andrea,

It was guanethedine, sorry, I thought she had a lumber sympathetic block The guanethidine is injected into a vein in the leg and there is a chance that perhaps the vein may have been damaged at the time of injection which could cause some local haematoma formation.This does resolve but can cause lots of pain if it happens and of course make it a very negative painful experience for Alison.
I have had one and one only guanethidine block. After needing 100mgs of Pethidine IV to get me through it and then a 3 week hospital stay after to "mend" the extra pain I had, I decided it was NO for anymore.
Whilst I have heard of some people having some luck with them, I wonder how many of us can tolerate the tourniquet well enough to make it worthwhile.
I wonder if an entirely new approach is what she needs--hopefully her stay in hospital coming up will steer things in the right direction for her.
Sending you lots of good wishes
Tayla