What is meant by digital nerve block?
Digital nerve block is a minor and easy to perform procedure that in done in cases of: • Different injuries (like fractures, lacerations, etc) • For different procedures (e.g. infection drainage and wound repair). The procedure involves injecting a regional anesthesia to anesthetize the area locally and specified nerves are blocked using this technique. ANATOMY In order to perform the digital nerve block, relevant anatomy of the area must be known. Digital nerve block is intended for the deep branches of median, ulnar and radial nerves. The deeper nerves are divided into the dorsal and palmar nerves. The dorsal nerves travel along the digit in 2 and 10 o'clock positions while the palmer nerves travel alongside the digits in 4 and 8 o'clock positions. The palmer branches from the median nerve innervated the first three digits, the radial side fourth digit along with the nail beds. The ulnar branches innervates the ulnar side of fourth digit and the fifth digit.