ISMP Medication Safety Alert!®
Featured Articles
The articles listed below were featured in the ISMP Medication Safety Alert! newsletters. New articles are frequently published highlighting important medication safety information. Related articles can be found in the full newsletter publications. You can subscribe to the full newsletters here.
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Problem: In our May 21, 2009, newsletter we noted an association between the ON-Q PainBuster elastomeric pump and chondrolysis (destruction of cartilage), particularly if the local anesthetic intended to reduce pain after surgery is infused directly into a joint rather than the tissue around it. Since then, we have received numerous reports of potential problems with using ON-Q pumps. Most of these problems can be addressed by hospitals so the pumps can be used safely to provide surgical wound analgesia and/or peripheral nerve block.
The ON-Q PainBuster Post-Op Pain Relief System (see Figure...