Utilization of Transverse Abdominis Plexus Block for Treatment of HeartMate II Left Ventricular Assist Device-Associated Pain: A Case Report

VENTRICULAR ASSIST DEVICES (VADs) are an effective modality as destination therapy or as a bridge to cardiac transplantation for patients with end-stage heart failure.1,2 However, VAD implantatation is associated with significant risk for adverse events, including, but not limited to, perioperative hemorrage, air embolism, right ventricular failure, infection, thromboembolism, and device failure.3 Additionally, patients with VADs may develop acute and/or chronic pain refractory to traditional medical management at the VAD driveline site or in the vicinity of the abdominal pocket where a particular device such as a HeartMate II (Thoratec Corp, Pleasanton, CA) is implanted.

Source: Journal of Cardiothoracic and Vascular Anesthesia - February 4, 2018 Category: Anesthesiology Authors: Antonio Hernandez Conte, Jennifer Hajj, Stephen X. Yang, Elizabeth Passano, Heather Barone, Dhilan A. Thuraisingham, Jaime Moriguchi, Jon Kobashigawa, Francisco Arabia Tags: Case Report Source Type: research