Background. The combination of increased munitions force, use of improvised explosive devices, and casualty survival rates has resulted in a dramatic increase in the percentage of injured combat veterans living with a traumatic amputation. Of American Veteran amputees, 35-98% develop chronic, intractable pain perceived as being from the missing limb, a phenomenon termed "phantom limb pain." This pain resolves in only 16% of afflicted individuals, and there is currently no reliable treatment. The etiology of phantom pain remains unclear, but evidence suggests that severing a nerve provokes changes in the spinal cord, thalamus, and cerebral cortex. When neural input from an amputated limb is blocked with local anesthetic (a peripheral nerve block), cortical abnormalities and phantom pain frequently resolve. However, when the single-injection nerve block resolves after a few hours, the phantom pain returns. These findings demonstrate that cortical abnormalities and phantom pain may be maintained from abnormal peripheral input, suggesting that a peripheral nerve block of extended duration-lasting many days rather than hours-may permanently reorganize cortical pain mapping, thus providing lasting relief from phantom pain. A "continuous peripheral nerve block" (CPNB) involves the percutaneous insertion of a catheter directly adjacent to the peripheral nerves supplying an affected limb. Local anesthetic infused via the catheter(s) induces a completely insensate extremity for as long as desired without any systemic side effects. Additionally, CPNB may be provided on an ambulatory basis using a small, portable pump to infuse the local anesthetic.
Objective. To determine if ambulatory CPNB is an effective treatment for intractable phantom limb pain following a traumatic limb amputation. Previously-published small, uncontrolled series describe patients immediately following surgical amputation whose phantom limb pain dramatically decreased or completely resolved with CPNB. We have data from a randomized, double-masked, placebo-controlled, crossover pilot study suggesting great promise treating intractable phantom limb pain with ambulatory CPNB: participants (n=3) experienced no change in their phantom pain following a 6-day infusion of normal saline; however, with a 6-day CPNB of potent local anesthetic administered 4 months later, subjects (n=2; one patient returned to duty before crossover infusion) experienced complete resolution of their phantom limb pain. Within the 12-week follow-up period, one subject experienced no phantom pain recurrence; and the other subject reported mild pain occurring once each week of just a small fraction of his original pain.
Specific Aims. The primary hypothesis is that phantom limb pain intensity will be significantly decreased 4 weeks following an ambulatory CPNB (as measured by the Numeric Rating Scale of the Brief Pain Inventory).
Study Design. We propose a multicenter, randomized, double-masked, placebo-controlled, simultaneous parallel and crossover, human-subjects clinical trial. We will include subjects with an existing upper or lower amputation who experience phantom limb pain at least daily for the previous 4 weeks. Catheter site(s) will be determined by amputation location. Subjects will be randomized to receive one of two study solutions in a double-masked manner: either a local anesthetic (ropivacaine 0.5%) or placebo (normal saline). Catheters will be removed after 6 days of at-home infusion. Although not required, each subject has the option to return for the alternative treatment four weeks later (crossover infusion). The primary endpoint will be the difference in average phantom pain intensity at baseline and 4 weeks following the initial infusion as measured with the Numeric Rating Scale between treatment groups for the initial infusion. Major secondary endpoints will involve intra- and inter-subject comparisons of additional measures of pain and health-related quality-of-life.
Clinical Impact. From 2001-2006, over 70% of all U.S. military casualties endured a major limb injury, with an amputation rate of 28% within Operation Enduring Freedom alone. Previous conflicts have left tens-of-thousands of United States Armed Forces Veterans with missing limbs. CPNB are now relatively ubiquitous within the United States, but applied nearly exclusively to provide acute post-injury/surgical analgesia. If the proposed study demonstrates that ambulatory CPNB is a reliable treatment for intractable phantom limb pain, the resulting impact in treating the consequences of traumatic amputation will be immediate and profound, as healthcare providers within the United States Armed Forces and Veterans Affairs Medical Centers already have expertise placing and managing perineural catheters. Currently, CPNB is provided exclusively in the acute setting-to treat pain immediately following a battlefield injury or surgery-and not chronic, intractable phantom limb pain. However, because there is little technical difference in providing CPNB for acute versus chronic pain, the thousands of U.S. Veterans and active duty personnel suffering from intractable phantom pain could be treated relatively easily, rapidly, and with negligible additional costs.
