Standard techniques to localize muscles or nerves have limitations for physicians performing chemodenervation procedures. Ultrasound has some clear advantages that can come into play now that equipment has become increasingly portable and lower in cost. This atlas reviews neurotoxin therapy with a strong emphasis on ultrasound technology for chemodenervation. The text is clearly organized and abundantly illustrated. The included DVD contains videos of procedures. The four authors are affiliated as follows: Katherine E. Alter (Mt. Washington Pediatric Hospital, and National Institutes of Health), and Mark Hallett, Barbara Karp, and Codrin Lungu (all: National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke). Annotation ©2013 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)
The text portion is intended as a practical reference manual, and is divided into three parts. The first part is an overview of the conditions and applications, general approach to chemodenervation and nerve block procedures, off- label indications, and injection pearls (what to do, what to avoid), followed by a review of the various agents (botulinum toxins, phenol, and alcohol) and their uses. The third part covers ultrasound basics for the clinician, including essential physics, machine settings, artifacts, scanning techniques, and pitfalls. The accompanying DVD is a visual atlas comprised of still images and cine-loops illustrating ultrasound anatomy, positioning, techniques for muscle localization, and procedures for performing all types of injections involving neurotoxins, peripheral nerve blocks, and motor point blocks.
This text and DVD atlas is designed for clinicians who are interested in adding ultrasound guidance for chemodenervation and neurolysis to their toolbox. The goal is to provide both a print text containing didactic material and a DVD atlas with video loops demonstrating localization techniques for specific muscles and injection procedures.