Abstract
We report a patient with intractable ulcer in the left fingers whose pain was relieved by repeated stellate ganglion blocks (SGB). A 77-year-old woman had developed paresthesia and pain of the hands for 1 month. She received thermal therapy, medication with Gosya-jinkigan, vitamin E, and intravenous vasodilator. However, the symptoms did not improve. The left fingers II and III became necrotic. She was referred to our hospital. Laboratory examination did not show any positive results for collagen diseases, thrombosis, or angiitis. Stellate ganglion block on the left and contralateral laser radiation to the lower neck aiming at stellate ganglion were performed. The pain lessened after the first stellate ganglion block and the color of the fingers improved in 1-week treatment. The finger ulcers gradually changed to granulation tissue, and the pain improved markedly in 1-month treatment. The pain in the fingers disappeared in 3-month treatment. The granulation tissue epithelized after 4 months. Repeated stellate ganglion blocks are effective in some selected patients with ischemic ulcers of the fingers.
