Clinical trial · Interventional
Stellate Ganglion Block in Head and Neck Cancer Surgery
Utility of Pre-Operative Stellate Ganglion Blockade for Pain Control in Unilateral Head and Neck Cancer Surgery
- Source
- ClinicalTrials.gov
- Retrieved
- Sep 8, 2026
- Layer
- normalized (units and labels harmonized; values unchanged)
- Run
- ING-CLINICALTRIALS-20260908-000001
Why stopped (as posted): Slow accrual, lack of benefit between intervention and control arms on interim analysis
Summary
Brief summary (as posted)
The purpose of this study is to evaluate and reduce pain and improve quality of life in patients being treated for head and neck cancer with unilateral surgery. In this study, patients will be randomly assigned to receive either pre-operative stellate ganglion block or no pre-operative treatment. Blocks will be placed by a trained anesthesiologist using ultrasound guidance in the preoperative holding area prior to surgery. All patients will receive the same post-operative pain medication regimen with appropriate pain treatment as needed. Patients will be asked to fill out surveys prior to surgery, while in the hospital after surgery, and at each follow-up appointment for up to 24 months.
Conditions
Conditions (2)
Free-text conditions as registered, with the CancerIndex entity they were reconciled to and the match type.
| Condition (as posted) | Mapped entity | Match | Confidence |
|---|---|---|---|
| Head and Neck Cancer | Malignant Head and Neck Neoplasm | ALIAS | 0.90 |
| Pain, Postoperative | — | UNRESOLVED | — |
Interventions
Interventions (1)
| Intervention | Type | Mapped drug | Match |
|---|---|---|---|
| Stellate ganglion block | Procedure | — | UNRESOLVED |
Design
Arms and outcomes
Arms (2)
- type
- EXPERIMENTAL
- label
- Treatment
- description
- Patients randomized to the Treatment arm will be assigned to receive a stellate ganglion block. While in the hospital after surgery, patients will be given a regimen of scheduled acetaminophen 650 milligrams every 6 hours. Planned treatment of post-operative pain will include the option of requesting oxycodone on an as-needed basis every four hours and IV morphine for breakthrough pain.
- interventionNames
- Procedure: Stellate ganglion block
- type
- NO_INTERVENTION
- label
- Control
- description
- Patients assigned to the Control arm will receive no pre-operative intervention. While in the hospital after surgery, these patients will be given a regimen of scheduled acetaminophen 650 milligrams every 6 hours. Planned treatment of post-operative pain will include the option of requesting oxycodone on an as-needed basis every four hours and IV morphine for breakthrough pain.
Primary outcomes (1)
- measure
Eligibility
Eligibility (as posted)
- Sex
- All
- Minimum age
- 18 Years
Show eligibility criteria text
Inclusion Criteria: * English-speaking patients who are greater than eighteen years of age with a known diagnosis of head and neck cancer and are planned to undergo surgery with unilateral neck dissection will be eligible for this study Exclusion Criteria: * Patients with a history of preoperative narcotic use for conditions unrelated to their head and neck cancer will be excluded. * Patients younger than eighteen years of age, patients with a history of vocal cord paralysis on the non-surgical side, patients with a history of severe difficulty swallowing, and pregnant patients will be excluded from this study. * Patients with a history of abnormal heart rhythm will be considered to have a relative contraindication and will require clearance by the consultant anesthesiologist prior to participation in the study.
References
Publications (7)
- BACKGROUNDGunduz OH, Kenis-Coskun O. Ganglion blocks as a treatment of pain: current perspectives. J Pain Res. 2017 Dec 14;10:2815-2826. doi: 10.2147/JPR.S134775. eCollection 2017. PMID 29276402
- BACKGROUNDWang QX, Wang XY, Fu NA, Liu JY, Yao SL. Stellate ganglion block inhibits formalin-induced nociceptive responses: mechanism of action. Eur J Anaesthesiol. 2005 Dec;22(12):913-8. doi: 10.1017/S0265021505001559. PMID 16318661
- BACKGROUNDMcDonnell JG, Finnerty O, Laffey JG. Stellate ganglion blockade for analgesia following upper limb surgery. Anaesthesia. 2011 Jul;66(7):611-4. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2044.2011.06626.x. Epub 2011 May 31. PMID 21627622
- BACKGROUNDJones GP, Tripathi SS. Successful use of stellate ganglion block and a new centrally acting analgesic with dual mode of action in a resistant temporomandibular joint pain. BMJ Case Rep. 2014 May 20;2014:bcr2013203308. doi: 10.1136/bcr-2013-203308. PMID 24849638
- BACKGROUNDSalvaggio I, Adducci E, Dell'Aquila L, Rinaldi S, Marini M, Zappia L, Mascaro A. Facial pain: a possible therapy with stellate ganglion block. Pain Med. 2008 Oct;9(7):958-62. doi: 10.1111/j.1526-4637.2008.00515.x. PMID 18950449
- BACKGROUNDKumar N, Thapa D, Gombar S, Ahuja V, Gupta R. Analgesic efficacy of pre-operative stellate ganglion block on postoperative pain relief: a randomised controlled trial. Anaesthesia. 2014 Sep;69(9):954-660. doi: 10.1111/anae.12774. Epub 2014 Jul 7. PMID 25040168
- BACKGROUNDGhai A, Kaushik T, Kumar R, Wadhera S. Chemical ablation of stellate ganglion for head and neck cancer pain. Acta Anaesthesiol Belg. 2016;67(1):6-8. PMID 27363209