JANUARY 12, 2024
The Utilization of Pre-op MRI for SCS Trials and Planning
NEW ORLEANS—Preprocedural MRI may influence spinal cord stimulation (SCS) trial progression and planning, according to a study presented at the 2023 annual American Society of Regional Anesthesia Pain Medicine meeting (abstract 4594).
“One of the things we worry about with spinal cord stimulation trials is the possibility of neurological injury,” study researcher David Provenzano, MD, the president of Pain Diagnostics and Interventional Care, in Sewickley, Pa., told Pain Medicine News.
According to Provenzano, preoperative MRIs reduce the risk for neurologic injury. Researchers performed a retrospective review of 343 patients who were being considered for an SCS trial between September 2013 and July 2023 and had preprocedural MRIs from a single center. Seven percent (n=25) of the patients had their SCS treatment influenced by preoperative MRIs.
“Looking at the breakdown of that, around 4% of those patients had their trials altered by an MRI finding, whereas around 3% of those patients actually had their trials completely halted due to an MRI finding,” said study author Esha Vaidya, a student at Washington and Jefferson College, in Washington, Pa.
—Landon
