Transvaginal Versus Fluoroscopy-guided Trans Gluteal Pudendal Nerve Block for Pudendal Neuralgia

Chronic pain affecting the pelvic and urogenital area is a major clinical problem and can have a profound impact on quality of life and health care costs. Pelvic pain arising from entrapment or neuropathy of the pudendal nerve is known as pudendal neuralgia, which results in chronic perineal pain. This pain syndrome is difficult to diagnose and patients with pudendal neuralgia may present to providers with refractory chronic pelvic pain. Pudendal nerve infiltration or pudendal nerve block (PNB) serves as a diagnostic tool and treatment modality for patients with this condition. To date, there are no published randomized controlled trials comparing imaging-guided PNB to transvaginal finger-guided PNB. While one can assume that image-guided nerve blocks will provide better accuracy for injection and potentially better efficacy in pain relief as a result, no published data exists comparing the outcomes and efficacy between modalities. The purpose of this prospective, non-inferiority, randomized controlled trial is to compare the efficacy of pain relief from bilateral transvaginal finger-guided pudendal nerve block versus bilateral fluoroscopy-guided trans gluteal pudendal nerve block for patients with pudendal neuralgia.