Erector Spinae Plane Catheter Analgesia in Minimally Invasive Mitral Valve Surgery: A Retrospective Case-Control Study for Inclusion in an Enhanced Recovery Program

Fascial plane blocks for cardiothoracic surgery: a narrative review

In recent years, there has been a growing awareness of the limitations and risks associated with the overreliance on opioids in various surgical procedures, including cardiothoracic surgery.This shift on pain management toward reducing reliance on opioids, together with need to improve patient outcomes, alleviate suffering, gain early mobilization after surgery, reduce hospital stay, and improve patient satisfaction and functional recovery, has led to the development and widespread implementation of enhanced recovery after surgery (ERAS) protocols.In this context, fascial plane blocks are emerging as part of a multimodal analgesic in cardiac surgery and as alternatives to conventional neuraxial blocks for thoracic surgery, and there is a growing body of evidence suggesting their effectiveness and safety in providing pain relief for these procedures. In this review, we discuss the most common fascial plane block techniques used in the field of cardiothoracic surgery, offering a comprehensive overview of regional anesthesia techniques and presenting the latest evidence on the use of chest wall plane blocks specifically in this surgical setting.

Non-Neuraxial Chest and Abdominal Wall Regional Anesthesia for Intensive Care Physicians-A Narrative Review

Multi-modal analgesic strategies, including regional anesthesia techniques, have been shown to contribute to a reduction in the use of opioids and associated side effects in the perioperative setting. Consequently, those so-called multi-modal approaches are recommended and have become the state of the art in perioperative medicine. In the majority of intensive care units (ICUs), however, mono-modal opioid-based analgesic strategies are still the standard of care. The evidence guiding the application of regional anesthesia in the ICU is scarce because possible complications, especially associated with neuraxial regional anesthesia techniques, are often feared in critically ill patients. However, chest and abdominal wall analgesia in particular is often insufficiently treated by opioid-based analgesic regimes. This review summarizes the available evidence and gives recommendations for peripheral regional analgesia approaches as valuable complements in the repertoire of intensive care physicians' analgesic portfolios.

Efficacy of erector spinae plane block for minimally invasive mitral valve surgery: Results of a double-blind, prospective randomized placebo-controlled trial

STUDY OBJECTIVE

To investigate if an erector spinae plane (ESP) block decreases postoperative opioid consumption, pain and postoperative nausea and vomiting in patients undergoing minimally invasive mitral valve surgery (MIMVS).

DESIGN

A single-center, double-blind, prospective, randomized, placebo-controlled trial.

SETTING

Postoperative period; operating room, post-anesthesia care unit (PACU) and hospital ward in a university hospital.

PATIENTS

Seventy-two patients undergoing video-assisted thoracoscopic MIMVS via right-sided mini-thoracotomy and enrolled in the institutional enhanced recovery after cardiac surgery program.

INTERVENTIONS

At the end of surgery, all patients received an ESP catheter at vertebra T5 under ultrasound guidance and were randomized to the administration of either ropivacaine 0.5% (loading of dose 30 ml and three additional doses of 20 ml with a 6 h interval) or normal saline 0.9% (with an identical administration scheme). In addition, patients received multimodal postoperative analgesia including dexamethasone, acetaminophen and patient-controlled intravenous analgesia with morphine. Following the final ESP bolus and before catheter removal, the position of the catheter was re-evaluated by ultrasound. Patients, investigators and medical personnel were blinded for the group allocation during the entire trial.

MEASUREMENTS

Primary outcome was cumulative morphine consumption during the first 24 h after extubation. Secondary outcomes included severity of pain, presence/extent of sensory block, duration of postoperative ventilation and hospital length of stay. Safety outcomes comprised the incidence of adverse events.

MAIN RESULTS

Median (IQR) 24-h morphine consumption was not different between the intervention- and control-group, 41 mg (30-55) versus 37 mg (29-50) (p = 0.70), respectively. Likewise, no differences were detected for secondary and safety endpoints.

CONCLUSIONS

Following MIMVS, adding an ESP block to a standard multimodal analgesia regimen did not reduce opioid consumption and pain scores.

Nociception Level Index-Directed Erector Spinae Plane Block in Open Heart Surgery: A Randomized Controlled Clinical Trial

Background and Objectives: The erector spinae plane block (ESPB) is a multimodal opioid-sparing component, providing chest-wall analgesia of variable extent, duration, and intensity. The objective was to examine the ESPB effect on perioperative opioid usage and postoperative rehabilitation when used within a Nociception Level (NOL) index-directed anesthetic protocol. Materials and Methods: This prospective, randomized, controlled, open-label study was performed in adult patients undergoing on-pump cardiac surgery in a single tertiary hospital. Eighty-three adult patients who met eligibility criteria were randomly allocated to group 1 (Control, n = 43) and group 2 (ESPB, n = 40) and received general anesthesia with NOL index-directed fentanyl dosing. Preoperatively, group 2 also received bilateral single-shot ultrasound-guided ESPB (1.5 mg/kg/side 0.5% ropivacaine mixed with dexamethasone 8 mg/20 mL). Postoperatively, both groups received intravenous paracetamol (1 g every 6 h). Morphine (0.03 mg/kg) was administered for numeric rating scale (NRS) scores ≥4. Results: The median (IQR, 25th−75th percentiles) intraoperative fentanyl and 48 h morphine dose in group 2-to-group 1 were 1.2 (1.1−1.5) vs. 4.5 (3.8−5.5) µg·kg−1·h−1 (p < 0.001) and 22.1 (0−40.4) vs. 60.6 (40−95.7) µg/kg (p < 0.001). The median (IQR) time to extubation in group 2-to-group 1 was 90 (60−105) vs. 360 (285−510) min (p < 0.001). Two hours after ICU admission, 87.5% of ESPB patients were extubated compared to 0% of controls (p < 0.001), and 87.5% were weaned off norepinephrine compared to 46.5% of controls (p < 0.001). The median NRS scores at 0, 6, 12, 24, and 48 h after extubation were significantly decreased in group 2. There was no difference in opioid-related adverse events and length of stay. Conclusions: NOL index-directed ESPB reduced intraoperative fentanyl by 73.3% and 48 h morphine by 63.5%. It also hastened the extubation and liberation from vasopressor support and improved postoperative analgesia.