Meet Dr. Mulvaney
SGB for the treatment of PTSD at The SGB Treatment Center
Dr. Sean Mulvaney pioneered the use of stellate ganglion block (SGB) for PTSD while serving in the military.
In March 2024, Dr. Mulvaney formed the SGB Treatment Center in Annapolis. He is continuing his mission of advancing innovations in the treatment of trauma and providing world class care to their patients.
Why choose SGB Treatment Center?
SGB Uses Safe & Effective Techniques
Dr. Mulvaney formed SGB Treatment Center to share his extensive experience, to provide top-notch care, and to serve as a leader who advocates for better treatment options for our patients.
He is a leading world expert in applying new variants of the stellate ganglion block procedure to treat the injury of trauma. We are wholly committed to providing compassionate world-class care to our patients. We will continue to publish research as well as educate both our patients and other clinicians on the benefits of SGB as a fusion between biologic and psychologic treatments for trauma.

Welcome to The SGB Treatment Center
116 Defense Highway,
Suite 203,
Annapolis, Maryland 21401
Get Directions Here
What is Stellate Ganglion Block?
For PTSD and Anxiety
The stellate ganglion block (SGB) is a procedure in which an injection of a long-acting local anesthetic, using ultrasound guidance, is made in the side of the neck around the main nerve that controls the “fight or flight” response (the sympathetic nervous system). This nerve, (the cervical sympathetic chain) which is a two-way conduit, connects the parts of the brain that control the fight or flight response (referred to as the central autonomic network) to the rest of the body. By blocking or “turning off” the traffic in the cervical sympathetic chain, it is believed that the parts of the brain that control the fight or flight response are allowed to completely reset, resulting in long-term relief of the associated anxiety symptoms. Multiple peer-reviewed medical studies show that SGB results in significant long-term improvement in chronic anxiety symptoms associated with post-traumatic stress injury (PTSI). The SGB takes less than 15 minutes to perform, and benefits are seen in as little as 30 minutes.
(Although the term PTSD is more commonly used, Dr. Mulvaney feels that the term post traumatic stress injury (PTSI) is medically more accurate. After all, an injury is something you can recover from.)
How does SGB work to help PTSD symptoms?
The stellate ganglion is part of the cervical sympathetic chain, a key part of the sympathetic nervous system (the “fight or flight” nervous system.) In PTSI and some other anxiety conditions, the “fight or flight” nervous system gets stuck in the “ON” position. By precisely placing long-acting local anesthetic (ropivacaine) around the stellate ganglion, the unproductive and chronic “fight or flight” response is turned off for several hours. This allows neurotransmitters in the brain to “reset” back to a non-anxiety state. This “resetting” results in long-term relief of anxiety symptoms. The SGB may improve daily activities, sleep, relationships, mood, employment and more.
Patient FAQs
Q: How much experience does Dr. Mulvaney have with SGB?
Dr. Mulvaney has published by far more original research on this topic than any other scientist in the world. Dr. Mulvaney has been performing and studying SGB for PTSD for over 12 years.
Over this 12-year period, Dr. Mulvaney has completed over 3,000 ultrasound-guided SGBs and is the most experienced physician in the world at this technique. He has been an invited speaker on nationally broadcast television, including the CBS show 60 Minutes. He has taught hundreds of physicians neck sonographic anatomy and SGB technique.
He is an academic physician and has published 12 studies and papers on this topic. Dr. Mulvaney is routinely invited as a subject matter expert on stellate ganglion block to lecture on this topic on major national and international stages.
What is Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)?
PTSD is a psychiatric disorder that may occur in people who have experienced or witnessed a traumatic event such as a natural disaster, a serious accident, a terrorist act, combat, or rape or who have been threatened with death, sexual violence or serious injury. Some propose using the term Post-traumatic stress injury (PTSI) to de-stigmatize the term “disorder” and to indicate the biologic nature of the traumatic injury sustained which can be healed with proper treatment, such as stellate ganglion block.
Many people who are exposed to a traumatic event experience symptoms such as:
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Being irritable or easily startled, having angry outbursts or problems concentrating or sleeping
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Distressing dreams or repeated, involuntary memories
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Avoiding activities and situations that may trigger distressing memories
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Feeling detached or estranged from others or difficulty experiencing positive emotions
For a person to be diagnosed with PTSD, these symptoms must last for more than a month and must cause significant distress or problems in the individual’s daily functioning. Symptoms may appear years after the trauma and often persist for months and sometimes years. PTSD often occurs with other related conditions, such as depression, substance use, memory problems and other physical and mental health problems.
PTSD affects approximately 3.5 percent of U.S. adults every year, and an estimated one in 11 people will be diagnosed with PTSD in their lifetime.
How does SGB work to help PTSD symptoms?
The Stellate Ganglion is part of the cervical sympathetic chain, a key part of the sympathetic nervous system, which is the “fight or flight” nervous system. In PTSD and some other anxiety conditions, the “fight or flight” nervous system gets stuck in the “ON” position. By precisely placing long-acting local anesthetic (ropivacaine) around the stellate ganglion, the unproductive and chronic “fight or flight” response is turned off for several hours. Dr. Mulvaney believes this allows the brain and the body to “reset” back to a non-anxiety state. The brain has a quality called “neuroplasticity”, which means it can actually have durable change in response to treatments like an SGB. What we do know and can measure is this “resetting” results in long-term relief of anxiety symptoms.
How many treatments does it usually take?
About one third of patients are successfully treated with a single SGB and do not need another SGB. Some people may be exposed to conditions that “re-trigger” their PTSD symptoms and need another treatment in the future. It can be safely repeated if it was helpful the first time. Completing follow up PCL-5 surveys at one week and one month after your SGB is performed is very important so we can document whether this was a good therapy for you.
What is the cost of a SGB at the SGB Treatment Center?
Most insurances do not cover SGB as a treatment for PTSD. This means that you will most likely have to pay for your procedure out-of-pocket.
The Stellate Institute provides procedural expertise, but perhaps equally important, we also provide 10+ years of personal experience performing SGB, quantifiable published outcomes on hundreds of OUR patients, and lessons learned from our behavioral health colleagues–this is what you get with The Stellate Institute.
The cost of an SGB at the SGB Treatment Center is $1300, and if the second side is done the next day, the cost is $900.