Efficacy/effectiveness of axillary nerve block to treat shoulder pain
WorkSafeBC Evidence-Based Practice Group, Martin CW
Record ID 32018013676
English
Authors' objectives:
To determine whether there is any evidence on the efficacy/effectiveness of axillary nerve block to treat shoulder pain.
Authors' results and conclusions:
Twenty published studies were identified from the above search. Upon examination on the titles and abstracts of these 20 studies, six were thought to be relevant and were retrieved in full for further appraisal. A manual search did not identify any further relevant article. Innervation of the shoulder involves several nerves including the Suprascapular, Axillary, Subscapular, Musculocutaneous and Lateral Pectoral nerves. About 70% of shoulder innervation arises from the Suprascapular nerve and the rest from the Axillary nerve with a relatively small contribution from the Lateral Pectoral, Musculocutaneous and Subscapularis nerves. Axillary nerve, which innervates the Deltoid muscle, Teres Minor muscle and long head of the Triceps Brachii muscle, usually is blocked together with the Suprascapular nerve as an analgesic alternative to Brachial Plexus Interscalene block. Of the six studies that were retrieved in full, no study provides any evidence on the efficacy/effectiveness of Axillary nerve block to treat shoulder pain. At present, there is no data showing the efficacy/effectiveness of Axillary nerve block in treating shoulder pain.
Authors' methods:
A comprehensive and systematic literature search was conducted on June 24, 2024. The search was done on commercial medical literature databases. Simple combination of keywords was employed in this search. No limitation, such as on the language or year of publication, was implemented in this search. A manual search was also done on the references of the articles that were retrieved in full.
Details
Project Status:
Completed
URL for project:
https://www.worksafebc.com/en/about-us/research-services/evidence-based-medicine-and-systematic-reviews
Year Published:
2024
English language abstract:
An English language summary is available
Publication Type:
Mini HTA
Country:
Canada
MeSH Terms
- Shoulder Pain
- Nerve Block
- Rotator Cuff Injuries
- Pain Management
Keywords
- axillary nerve block
- shoulder pain
Contact
Organisation Name:
WorkSafeBC
Contact Address:
6591 Westminster Highway, Richmond, BC, V7C 1C6 Canada. Tel: 604-231-8417; Fax: 604-279-7698
Contact Name:
ebpg@worksafebc.com
Contact Email:
ebpg@worksafebc.com
Copyright:
WorkSafe BC
This is a bibliographic record of a published health technology assessment from a member of INAHTA or other HTA producer. No evaluation of the quality of this assessment has been made for the HTA database.