UC San Diego

Backgruond

Rib fractures are a common injury in trauma patients and account for significant morbidity and mortality within this population. Local anesthetic-based nerve blocks have been demonstrated to provide significant pain relief and reduce complications. However, the analgesia provided by these blocks is limited to hours for single injection blocks or days for continuous infusions, while the duration of this pain often lasts weeks.

Case

This case series describes five patients with rib fractures whose pain was successfully treated with cryoneurolysis.

Conclusions

Ultrasound-guided percutaneous cryoneurolysis is a modality that has the potential to provide analgesia matching the duration of pain following rib fractures.