The Specificity of Cervical Facet Medial Branch Blocks
Completed · Not applicable
Conditions studied: Neck Pain, Cervical Facet Arthropathy
In brief
Cervical facet arthropathy is a common cause of chronic neck pain. The "gold standard" for diagnosis is either blocking the facet joints, or more commonly blocking the medial branch nerves that innervate the joints. However, many studies have found a high false-positive rate when the nerves are blocked using 0.5 ml of local anesthetic. We will randomize patients to receive either cervical facet medial branch blocks with 0.25 ml of local anesthetic and contrast, or 0.5 ml. We will then do a CT scan to determine the accuracy and specificity of each block. Our hypothesis is that using the higher volume (0.5 ml) might be responsible for the high false-positive rate.
Key facts
- Study ID
- NCT00613340
- Run by
- Johns Hopkins University
- People needed
- 20
- Starts
- 2008-01-01
- Expected to finish
- 2009-04-01
- Last updated by the study team
- 2009-08-07
Who can join
Age: 18 and older. Sex: any. Healthy volunteers: not accepted.
You may qualify if…
- Age > 18 years
- Chronic neck pain > 3 months
- Paraspinal tenderness
You may not qualify if…
- Absence of radicular symptoms
- No bleeding diathesis
- Contrast allergy
Where it is running
- Walter Reed Army Medical Center — Washington D.C., District of Columbia, United States
Full record on ClinicalTrials.gov
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