Evaluation of Effects and Adverse Effects of Ultrasound-guided Stellate Ganglion Block in Patients with Orofacial Pain

Stellate ganglion block (SGB) provides valuable diagnostic and therapeutic benefits to patients with sympathetically maintained pain syndrome in the orofacial region. However, the safety of the procedure must be improved. The techniques for SGB have evolved over time. In addition to the standard blind technique (Blind-SGB), ultrasoundguided SGB( US-SGB) has recently been developed. In this study, we compared the effects and adverse effects of Blind-SGB and US-SGB. A total of 148 patients were enrolled in this study:79 patients in the Blind-SGB group, and 69 patients in the USSGB group. Furthermore, the US-SGB group was divided into subgroups according to whether the anesthetic agent was or was not observed under the longus colli muscle (ULC group [48 patients] and non-ULC group [21 patients], respectively). We compared the incidences of effects such as Horner's syndrome and adverse effects such as hoarseness and deep vein puncture in each group. No significant difference in efficacy was seen between the Blind-SGB and US-SGB groups. However, the incidence of Horner's syndrome was significantly higher in the ULC group than in the non-ULC group. Furthermore, the appearance of adverse effects was significantly lower in the ULC group than in the non-ULC group. US-SGB has attracted growing interest because of its efficacy, safety, and numerous other advantages.