New Approach to Objective Monitoring of Sympathetic Blocks for Chronic Pain Treatment through Infrared Thermal Imaging

Özet

In a recent article published at this journal, Ervural and Ceylan have discussed the use of artificial intelligence methods and thermal imaging in medical applications. In their concluding statement, the authors of the article conjecture that infrared thermal imaging can potentially be used in the diagnosis and treatment of Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (CRPS). In this letter to editor, we want to confirm their conclusion and add to their argument based on our experience in a recent work that aimed to show the efficacy of thermal infrared imaging as a monitor for sympathetic blocks in Complex Regional Pain Syndrome. Our work has shown that the AI supported comparison of pre- and post-operation thermal profiles of a limb can help objectively monitor the success of the sympathetic blocks in clinical settings.