Peripheral nerve blockade of the lower extremity focuses on two major nerves: the sciatic and femoral. Both nerves lie near large vascular structures and can require significant volumes of injectate to produce a reliable analgesic blockade. Moreover, blockade of these nerves leads to corresponding muscle weakness that can be unnecessary or even undesirable for recovery following surgery. New-generation, high-resolution ultrasound (US) probes facilitate the visualization of selective nerves in the lower extremity. Therefore, blockade of these nerves can be performed at multiple locations that can be individualized for specific patients undergoing forefoot and midfoot surgeries. This article describes an educational approach for selective lower extremity blocks of the saphenous, tibial, sural, superficial peroneal, and deep peroneal nerves with corresponding clinical applications for common forefoot and midfoot surgeries. These techniques are presented in a stepwise approach with surface and corresponding US anatomy. Cadaveric dissections are also included with some of the described techniques to emphasize the anatomical relationships. Each of these techniques, in this educational review, begins with easily identifiable surface landmarks and follows a stepwise approach. Understanding of these lower extremity selective nerve blocks allows for targeted low-volume blockade of specific sensory distributions, individualized to each patient.
Moody et al. (Thu,) studied this question.