Thanks Ali,
He has very limited movement in that arm as the rotator cuff surgery that started this also failed. The top of his arm is actually a little higher than his shoulder because of the original injury was so bad(his tendon was completly detached from the bone) When they reattached the muscle back to the bone and sewed up the muscle it left the muscle to short. Also the muscle is torn again. So he has more going on in that shoulder, but still uses arm just cant move it very far from his body(think chicken dance) but can bend elbow (think eatting or drinkking) He would like some physical therapy and take his meds and call it a day. The blocks helped with him being able to wear clothing on his shoulder and arm but seems to have opened a whole nother ball of wax.

Yup, a shoulder "expert" messed me up too. I've had 17 SGB's (#18 this Tuesday)....almost all helped without the kind of side effect that you are describing, although I have had others. And I didn't get the benefit of a successful arthroscopy either. I agree....you need to talk to the PM doc who did the block.

Blocks need to be treated with respect. The experience of the doc with RSD, the time he spends, the meds he uses--all make a difference. This is your spine we're talking about! But, it is an important tool as well.

For the OP, was this a stellate ganglion block? I had a radiofrequency neurotomy that was a described as a longer lasting, more intense block, and I had horrible side effects...

How bad is the swelling? The severity is key.

If he's suddenly able to move it after long disuse that could account for some swelling and that in turn could cause numbness. The twitching could be a result of the nerves finally getting messages after so long a period of dysfunction.

Get him in to the doc that performed the block asap. Get a second opinion if he doesn't relieve your concerns.

5 blocks, especially in a short amount of time, can cause scarring on the nerves. This maybe should be his last... But, they might be finally starting to have a positive cumulative effect...

Dr doing blocks is not his treating dr and i dont think he has much knowledge of RSD.
His surgery was over 6-7 months ago so it isnt like has gained any ROM he has been out of a sling full time for quite awhile.
he sees the back dr tomorrow and i will get with the shoulder dr inthe am
the swelling was more than normal and also in a new area. now with the arm on verge of falling asleep has me concerned that maybe they are doing more harm than good
he is supposed to have the last 2 blocks tuesday and friday. i think a follow up visit is called for even tho he isnt done.
since this is workers comp we dont get the luxery of going to other dr's until we are referred. Otherwise I would just schedule him with a expert in RSD or at least as close as i could find. Grrr
His treating Dr has treated RSD patients though i found out but he is a Orthopedic Surgeon. Think with what is going on he will send hubby to another Dr for the RSD he was trying to stop it so he could do surgery to fix the shoulder and I just dont see that happening.
thank you all for your responses they are most appresciated

Well all, I called his Dr this am and spoke with his nurse (she is familiar with RSD I was impressed) Anyway I told her what had been going on and she got with the Dr and called me back.
Dr cancelled the last two injections and wants to see him tomorrow. I will be going with him and am anxious about what he recommends next
Wish us luck!

Good luck at the doctor's. Let us know how that turns out. I had a bad reaction to a block and it made my RSD worse...but I hope that is not the case for your husband. It may just be that he's not getting enough relief and it's time to try a different treatment. Good luck...I really hope they are able to find something that helps your husband. Sometimes it's just a lot of trial and error to find exactly what works.

I believe well I know the shots just made him worse. I fear they have sent him on a slippery slide,he won't recover from.
He saw the back Dr today that MMI him or in other words said your as good as your getting and gave him permanet restrictions and recomending retraining. So he had to face the Dr telling him his career is over and thats not even including his shoulder and the RSD! Needless to say he is angry at the world today.
I will report back tomorrow what the Dr says about his shoulder/RSD.

So Dr stopped the blocks. When hubby turned hand over to show Dr where his palm was numb, the Dr jumped up and flipped his hand back over nd was concerned about how bad his hand had atrophied, this is evident in his entire arm. his elbow is now the largest part of his arm! The other night we noticed his arms were two different colors. He is now to have an EMG of which he isnt amused.

That's not good at all...I'm sorry.

And it shouldn't stop there with only an EMG. With that much atrophy, neurologically more needs to be explored to find out if the atrophy is a nerve compression (more likely) issue or "muscle" (less likely) issue. Assuming the prior, then they need to determine if it is a nerve root problem or peripheral nerve problem. Adding a NCV and SSEP's will better clarify the origin. So the options will come down to a neck problem (root compression), a peripheral nerve injury (surgery related - direct injury to plexus or non-resolved traction injury or non-surgically related), atrophy secondary to CRPS or a combination of the above. I wouldn't think that SGB's would cause so much nerve damage unless the PM doc was totally inept and way off the mark (possible I suppose).