Pain relieving effect of scalenotomy

Area of Science:

• Orthopedics
• Neurology
• Pain Management

Background:

• Anterior scalenus muscle syndrome can cause upper extremity pain and paresthesia.
• Surgical intervention, specifically sectioning the anterior scalenus muscle, is a treatment option.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the effectiveness of anterior scalenus muscle section in patients with specific symptoms.
• To assess patient outcomes following the surgical procedure.

Main Methods:

• A follow-up study was conducted on 37 patients who underwent anterior scalenus muscle section.
• Patients reported pain, paresthesia in upper extremities, and tenderness over the muscle.
• Pain relief was assessed after local anesthetic injection into the anterior scalenus muscle.

Main Results:

• All patients experienced pain relief following local anesthetic injection.
• Twenty-five out of 37 patients showed marked improvement.
• Patients presenting with neurological signs appeared to have better outcomes (P = 0.06).

Conclusions:

• Section of the anterior scalenus muscle, combined with local anesthetic injection, is an effective treatment for associated upper extremity symptoms.
• The procedure shows promise, particularly for patients with neurological involvement.