PT - JOURNAL ARTICLE AU - Mauricio Forero AU - Sanjib D. Adhikary AU - Hector Lopez AU - Calvin Tsui AU - Ki Jinn Chin TI - The Erector Spinae Plane Block: <em>A Novel Analgesic Technique in Thoracic Neuropathic Pain</em> AID - 10.1097/AAP.0000000000000451 DP - 2016 Sep 01 TA - Regional Anesthesia &amp; Pain Medicine PG - 621--627 VI - 41 IP - 5 4099 - http://rapm.bmj.com/content/41/5/621.short 4100 - http://rapm.bmj.com/content/41/5/621.full SO - Reg Anesth Pain Med2016 Sep 01; 41 AB - Abstract Thoracic neuropathic pain is a debilitating condition that is often poorly responsive to oral and topical pharmacotherapy. The benefit of interventional nerve block procedures is unclear due to a paucity of evidence and the invasiveness of the described techniques. In this report, we describe a novel interfascial plane block, the erector spinae plane (ESP) block, and its successful application in 2 cases of severe neuropathic pain (the first resulting from metastatic disease of the ribs, and the second from malunion of multiple rib fractures). In both cases, the ESP block also produced an extensive multidermatomal sensory block. Anatomical and radiological investigation in fresh cadavers indicates that its likely site of action is at the dorsal and ventral rami of the thoracic spinal nerves. The ESP block holds promise as a simple and safe technique for thoracic analgesia in both chronic neuropathic pain as well as acute postsurgical or posttraumatic pain.