The primary aim of our study was to compare the need for periinterventional on-demand analgesia when water for injection (WFI) was replaced with glucose 5% (G5) for 90Y-resin microsphere administration.
Methods: Forty-one patients who received 77 radioembolization procedures with G5 (2014-2015) were retrospectively matched with 41 patients (77 radioembolization procedures) who received radioembolization with WFI (2011-2014) at our center. The need for on-demand pain medication was chosen as an objective and accessible measure of periprocedural pain experienced by patients.
Results: Patients were well matched according to sex, age, tumor type and involvement, and prior antiangiogenic therapies. Periinterventional analgesic requirements were significantly lower for radioembolization procedures performed with G5 than WFI: 5 of 77 (6.5%) versus 29 of 77 (37.7%), P ≤ 0,001, respectively. Early stasis (defined as slowed antegrade flow, before total vascular stasis) occurred in 12 of 154 (7.8%) radioembolization procedures overall and was not different (P ≤ 0.229) between the 2 groups (4/77 [5.2%] vs. 8/77 [10.4%]).
Conclusion: Slow pulsatile administration of 90Y-resin microspheres with WFI is associated with a low rate of stasis. Replacement of WFI with G5 significantly reduces the need for periprocedural analgesia. These data favor the use G5 for 90Y-resin microsphere implantation in daily practice.
Keywords: glucose 5% (G5); peri-procedural analgesia; radioembolization (RE); stasis rate; water for injection (WFI).
© 2016 by the Society of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging, Inc.