News & Resources

Unique Approach Reduces Pain Following Breast Surgery and Reconstruction

As October, and Breast Cancer Awareness Month 2022 come to a close, we examine how a new and innovative approach to breast surgery is changing so many lives for the better. In fact, the results of implementing IAA’s DIEP flap protocol have been nothing short of astounding.

In this informative video interview, anesthesiologist Dr. Emily Harmon from St. Vincent’s Medical Center in Bridgeport, CT explains how IAA anesthesiologists implement a unique protocol using ultrasound machines to locate specific nerves responsible for pain and skillfully inject medicine around them during breast cancer or reconstructive surgery.

Click in to see Dr. Harmon discussing how IAA’s unique DIEP flap protocol is

  1. reducing overall pain and the need for strong pain medications following surgery
  2. reducing the amount of anesthesia needed during surgery
  3. and, improving breast surgery patient’s recovery time and surgical outcome

“IAA’s DIEP flap protocol, including the blocks and intraoperative management, consistently produces positive patient and surgeon satisfaction. This results in significantly less pain and shorter hospital stays for our breast surgery patients. In fact, many of our patients take zero opiate pain medications during their hospital stay, while the rest take very few. This, in turn, helps to significantly reduce the need for opiates following discharge and decreases the risk for opiate addiction following surgery. Over the past year, IAA has seen the volume of cases benefiting from this DIEP flap block protocol increase. Our team is currently participating in several of these cases a week with great results.”
                                                                                                                                     Dr. Emily Harmon, M

VIEW & DOWNLOAD THE RESEARCH:

Multimodal Opioid-sparing Analgesia For DIEP Flap Breast Reconstruction Using PEC / Quadratus Lumborum Blocks: A Case Series

Multimodal Opioid-sparing Analgesia For DIEP Flap Breast Reconstruction Using PEC / Quadratus Lumborum Blocks: A Case Series

 

CONTACT IAA FOR MORE INFORMATION
about the benefits of DIEP flap blocks for breast cancer surgery

Emily Harmon, MD | Email Dr. Harmon 

Theresa Bowling, MD  | Email Dr. Bowling


LEARN MORE

about IAA’s Anesthesia Research Program here >>

Emily Penn Harmon, MD

Emily Harmon, MD

Theresa Bowling, MD

Theresa Bowling, MD

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

#breastsurgery, #breastcancer, #anesthesia #research #painmedicine #nerveblocks #integratedanethesiaassociates #iaapartners  #iaa #breastcancerawarenessmonth #NBCF

Unique Approach Reduces Pain Following Breast Surgery and Reconstruction