Cervical Medial Branch Block Versus Ipsilateral Cervical Erector Spinae Plane Block

NCT07595406 | Not Yet Recruiting

• 1 other identifier: 123456
• Study Type: interventional
• Target: 130
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 1

Brief Summary

This prospective randomized controlled study aims to compare the analgesic effectiveness of ultrasound-guided cervical medial branch block and ipsilateral cervical erector spinae plane block in patients with cervical facetogenic pain. Patients with chronic cervical facet-mediated pain will be randomized into two intervention groups. Pain intensity, functional status, meaningful pain response rates, analgesic consumption, and patient satisfaction will be evaluated during follow-up. The primary objective is to determine whether cervical erector spinae plane block provides comparable short-term pain relief to cervical medial branch block.

Conditions

Cervical Facetogenic Pain; Chronic Neck Pain; Cervical Facet Joint Syndrome

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (1)

• Meaningful Pain Response

  Proportion of patients achieving at least 50% reduction in Numeric Rating Scale (NRS) pain score during the early post-procedural period.

  Time Frame: 1 hour after the procedure

Secondary Outcomes (7)

• NRS24

  at 24 Hours

• NRS1

  1 week after the procedure

• NDI

  Baseline and 1 week after the procedure

• GPE

  1 week after the procedure

• Analgesic Consumption

  24 hours and 1 week after the procedure

Study Arms (2)

Cervical Medial Branch Block

EXPERIMENTAL

Ultrasound-guided cervical medial branch block will be performed at the clinically suspected symptomatic cervical facet levels.

Other: Ultrasound-guided cervical medial branch block

Cervical Erector Spinae Plane Block

EXPERIMENTAL

Ultrasound-guided ipsilateral cervical erector spinae plane block will be performed at the symptomatic cervical level. I

Other: Ultrasound-guided cervical erector spinae plane block

Interventions

Ultrasound-guided cervical medial branch block OTHER

Ultrasound-guided cervical medial branch block performed at clinically suspected symptomatic cervical facet levels using local anesthetic for diagnostic and analgesic purposes.

Cervical Medial Branch Block

Ultrasound-guided cervical erector spinae plane block OTHER

Ultrasound-guided ipsilateral cervical erector spinae plane block performed at the symptomatic cervical level using local anesthetic for analgesic purposes.

Cervical Erector Spinae Plane Block

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 18 Years+
• Sex: all
• Healthy Volunteers: No
• Age Groups: Adult (18-64), Older Adult (65+)

You may qualify if:

• Age between 18 and 80 years
• Chronic neck pain lasting at least 3 months
• Clinical findings suggestive of cervical facetogenic pain
• Numeric Rating Scale pain score ≥4
• Ability to provide informed consent

You may not qualify if:

• Cervical radiculopathy or myelopathy
• Major neurological deficit
• Infection at the injection site
• Coagulopathy or anticoagulant therapy contraindicating intervention
• Allergy to local anesthetics
• Pregnancy
• Previous cervical interventional pain procedure within the last 3 months
• Severe psychiatric disease

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Ankara City Hospital Bilkent: lead

Study Sites (1)

Ankara Bilkent City Hospital

Ankara, Ankara, 06680, Turkey (Türkiye)

Location

Related Publications (1)

• Elsharkawy H, Ince I, Hamadnalla H, Drake RL, Tsui BCH. Cervical erector spinae plane block: a cadaver study. Reg Anesth Pain Med. 2020 Jul;45(7):552-556. doi: 10.1136/rapm-2019-101154. Epub 2020 Apr 21.

  PMID: 32321860 RESULT

Central Study Contacts

Ülkü Sabuncu, Assoc prof

CONTACT

905337085212; sabuncuulku@gmail.com

Study Design

• Study Type: interventional
• Phase: not applicable
• Allocation: RANDOMIZED
• Masking: SINGLE
• Who Masked: PARTICIPANT
• Masking Details: Participants will be blinded to treatment allocation. Due to the technical and procedural differences between the interventions, the physician performing the procedure cannot be blinded.
• Purpose: TREATMENT
• Intervention Model: PARALLEL
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
• PI Title: Assoc Prof

Model Details: Participants with clinically suspected cervical facetogenic pain will be randomly assigned in a parallel-group design to receive either ultrasound-guided cervical medial branch block or ultrasound-guided ipsilateral cervical erector spinae plane block. Outcomes including pain intensity, meaningful pain response, functional status, analgesic consumption, and patient satisfaction will be compared between the two intervention groups during follow-up.

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: April 28, 2026
• First Posted: May 19, 2026
• Study Start (Estimated): May 31, 2026
• Primary Completion (Estimated): September 30, 2026
• Study Completion (Estimated): December 31, 2026
• Last Updated: May 19, 2026

Record last verified: 2026-05

Locations

TU (1)