OBJECTIVE To compare the accuracy rates of non-guided vs. ultrasound-guided needle placement in four lower limb muscles (tibialis posterior, peroneus longus, and short and long heads of the biceps femoris). METHODS Two electromyographers examined the four muscles in each of eight lower limbs from four fresh frozen cadavers. Each electromyographer injected an assigned dye into each targeted mu...

Diagnostic and therapeutic image-guided percutaneous interventions have become increasingly important in the clinical management of various conditions. Though precise needle placement via a safe route is essential for successful percutaneous interventions, it is often difficult in cases of deeply situated, small lesions. The present paper describes the efficacy of the directable needle guide (D...

OBJECTIVE A crucial problem in the non-operative diagnosis of thyroid nodules is the significant amount of non-diagnostic biopsies. This is a challenge for practicing endocrinologists especially when the results of the repeated biopsies remain non-diagnostic. The lack of a concrete preoperative diagnosis may result in unnecessary thyroidectomies in patients. Alternatively, it may also lead to t...

Post-dural puncture headache (PDPHA) has been a vexing problem for patients undergoing dural puncture for spinal anaesthesia, as a complication of epidural anaesthesia, and after diagnostic lumbar puncture since Bier reported the first case in 1898. This Chapter discusses the pathophysiology of low-pressure headache resulting from leakage of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) from the subarachnoid to th...

PURPOSE Recent studies have illuminated the vitreous proteome as a potentially important diagnostic tool that will predict disease progression and response to treatment, in eyes with retinal disease. Studies to date have demonstrated correlations of protein levels between vitreous and aqueous humor. Because these results are un-expected and analysis was only done on a few endpoints, the present...

Cost containment is a critical factor in today's healthcare industry, so finding ways to decrease length of stay is essential in anesthesia practice. We rely on rapid induction, recovery, and discharge to control cost in outpatient surgery. Subarachnoid block (SAB) is an acceptable anesthetic choice for many outpatient procedures. It is often underused because it may result in delayed discharge...

• Interstitial pressure has usually been measured by inserting a very small needle into a tissue and then determining the minimum pressure required to make fluid flow from the needle into the tissue." Unfortunately, even when extremely small needles are used for this purpose, such as 25 to 30 gauge, the external diameter of the needle is still some 300 to 500 times as large as the widths of the...

BACKGROUND AND STUDY AIMS A variety of factors (needle type, needle passes, tumor location, cytological assessment, etc.) may influence the diagnostic accuracy of endoscopic ultrasound-guided fine-needle aspiration cytology (EUS-FNAC) from pancreatic tumors. Whereas most published studies report a diagnostic accuracy of > 80 % for EUS-FNAC, the results in routine settings are often considerably...