Nerve Blocks – Risks

Transcript

Some people ask, “What are the side effects of blocks? What kind of complications may I have?” Well, you may get the pins and needles. You may get a funny sensation in your arm or leg, depending where the nerve block is done. Sometimes people get itchiness at the site of injection. And so people may even get a little nauseous just from the sedation. Additional side effects may be soreness around the injection and occasionally muscle spasms. All these are transitory and temporary and don’t last for long. Like any other procedure, there are risks, such as infection, bleeding or any injury to the nerve, which is very low. We always discuss the risks of the nerve block the day of surgery. Less than 2 out of 10,000 people have permanent nerve injuries when we perform nerve blocks.