Radiofrecuencia térmica como alternativa en el tratamiento del dolor neuropático localizado persistente por atrapamiento de un nervio colateral de la mano

Abstract

Localized neuropathic pain (LNP) is a relatively common cause of musculoskeletal pain, which can be present in up to 60% of neuropathic pain conditions. Its appearance can be associated with numerous pathologies (herpes, diabetes, etc.). A less common cause would be the direct compression of a peripheral nerve branch. Its diagnosis is usually clinical since complementary tests such as neurophysiological tests do not provide definitive data. As therapeutic measures we have oral analgesics, anticonvulsants, analgesic skin patches and interventional actions, including radiofrequency (RF). Thermal RF consists in the transmission of an electric impulse through a needle reaching a controlled increase in temperature with which a nerve ablative injury is achieved.

We present a clinical case where thermal RF of the collateral nerve of the hand is proposed as a therapeutic alternative, whose entrapment is the cause of pain, obtaining a satisfactory clinical improvement.