THE SHOULDER-HAND syndrome.

Abstract

ABSTRACT To the Editor:— In the QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS section of The Journal (200:1138, 1967) the discussion on treatment of the "Shoulder-Hand Syndrome" contains the following:"The literature of ten years ago contains reference to local sympathetic block; I have had no experience with this form of treatment and would be most reluctant to use it."Dr. Levine is to be commended for his frankness. However, lack of familiarity with a technique is no reason to infer that it is of no practical usefulness.In my experience, the use of nerve block—and sympathetic block is only one of several which may be applied in this situation—in conjunction with proper physiotherapy can be a very effective method of treatment for shoulder-hand syndrome resulting from a number of insults, coronary artery disease being one. Indeed, this may be an effective treatment after others have failed, which would seem to have been the