The Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Children Health & Human Development (NICHD) at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) has awarded pediatric surgeons Benjamin Padilla, MD, and Michael Harrison, MD, a two-year grant to study the use of cryoanalgesia as a novel method of pain control in the Nuss Procedure. This study is a prospective, randomized trial comparing cryoanalgesia to thoracic epidural analgesia in post-operative pain control on adolescent and young adult patients who have undergone the Nuss Procedure. Cryoanalgesia is an innovative technology that locally freezes the peripheral nerves, causing nerve axons to degenerate. The result is temporary prevention of pain transmission, with complete axonal regeneration occurring in approximately 4-6 weeks. If effective, this pain control strategy could shorten hospital stays and decrease pain and opiate usage among Nuss procedure patients.
Benjamin Padilla and Michael Harrison Awarded NIH R03 for Cryoanalgesia Study
The UCSF-Stanford Pediatric Device Consortium is funded by the U.S. Food & Drug Administration's Office of Orphan Products Development under grant no. P50FD007967.
