Indications and Applications
Regional anaesthesia may provide anaesthesia (absence of feeling, including pain) to allow a surgical operation, or provide post-operative pain relief. Various brachial plexus blocks exist for shoulder and arm procedures. Methods similar to routine regional anaesthetic techniques are also often used for treating chronic pain.
In labour and childbirth, epidural or combined spinal epidurals provide effective pain relief. Regional anaesthesia is now more common than general anaesthesia for Caesarean section procedures.
Nerve blocks are widely used in veterinary medicine to diagnose lameness. A very common application is the diagnosis of navicular disease in horses.
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