Infection related to ultrasound-guided single-injection peripheral nerve blockade: A decade of experience at Toronto Western Hospital

Abstract

The use of ultrasound guidance has revolutionized regional anesthesia practice. Ultrasound equipment disinfection techniques vary between institutions. To date, there are no large data set publications or evidence-based guidelines that describe risk-reduction techniques for infectious complications related to the use of ultrasound guidance for peripheral nerve blockade. We retrospectively reviewed the medical charts of 7476 patients who received ultrasound-guided single-injection peripheral nerve blockade from October 2003 to August 2013 using our institution's low-level disinfection technique in combination with a sterile transparent film barrier dressing to cover the ultrasound transducer. No indications of block-related infection were found. We conclude that using a practical and efficient low-level disinfection technique and sterile barrier dressing results in an extremely low rate of block-related infection following ultrasound-guided single-injection peripheral nerve blockade.