SHOULDER & ELBOW
Pectoral nerve block significantly reduces hyperacute pain and opioid use in shoulder arthroscopy
Anesth Analg. 2019;129(2):536-542. doi: 10.1213/ANE.0000000000004233Intrascalene blocks (ISB) are commonly performed for patients undergoing shoulder arthroscopy in an effort to reduce pain. Given the ongoing opioid crisis, there is an increasing focus on peri-operative techniques that can help to minimize the need for opioids in this period. Thus, the investigators randomized 40 patients, all of whom were receiving an ISB, to also receive a pectoral nerve block versus a sham pectoral nerve block. They found that patients in the pectoral nerve block group had significantly lower pain scores at 6 hours, as well as significantly lower opioid requirements while in the post-anaesthetic care unit (PACU). There was no difference between the two groups in terms of pain at 24 hours, post-operative nausea or vomiting, PACU length of stay, or post-PACU opioid use.
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