Comparative study between an ultrasound-guided transversus abdominis plane block and an ultrasound-guided caudal block for postoperative analgesia in children undergoing lower abdominal surgeries – a prospective randomised study

A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis Comparing the Effectiveness of Transversus Abdominis Plane Block and Caudal Block for Relief of Postoperative Pain in Children Who Underwent Lower Abdominal Surgeries

Background and Objectives: Postoperative pain after lower abdominal surgery is typically severe. Traditionally, in pediatric anesthesia, a caudal block (CB) has been used for pain management in these cases. Nowadays, a transversus abdominis plane block (TAPB) seems to be an effective alternative. However, which technique for perioperative analgesia is better and more effective remains unclear in children who undergo abdominal surgeries. The aim of this study was to compare the efficacy and safety of a TAPB and CB for pain management in children after abdominal surgery by conducting a meta-analysis of published papers in this area. Methods: We conducted a thorough search of PubMed, EMBASE, the Cochrane Library, and the Web of Science for randomized controlled trials (RCTs) that compared a TAPB and CB for pain management in children who had abdominal surgery. Two researchers screened and assessed all the information with RevMan5.3 used for this meta-analysis. Pain scores, the total dose of rescue analgesic given, the mean duration of analgesia, the intraoperative and postoperative hemodynamic conditions 24 h after surgery, and adverse events were compared. Results: 15 RCTs that involved a total of 970 pediatric patients were included in this study. The results of this meta-analysis showed that there were no significant differences between the 2 groups in terms of postoperative pain scores at 1 h (SMD = 0.35; 95% CI = -0.54 to 1.24; p = 0.44, I2 = 94%), 6 h (SMD = -0.10; 95% CI = -0.44 to -0.23; p = 0.55, I2 = 69%), 12 h (SMD = -0.02; 95% CI = -0.45 to -0.40; p = 0.93, I2 = 80%), and 24 h (SMD = -0.66; 95% CI = -1.57 to -0.25; p = 0.15, I2 = 94%); additional analgesic requirement (OR 0.25; 95% CI 0.09 to 0.63; p = 0.004, I2 = 72%); total dose of rescue analgesic given in 24 h (SMD = -0.37; 95% CI = -1.33 to -0.58; p = 0.44; I2 = 97%); mean duration of analgesia (SMD = 1.29; 95% CI = 0.01 to 2.57; p = 0.05, I2 = 98%); parents' satisfaction (SMD = 0.44; 95% CI = -0.12 to 1.0; p = 0.12; I2 = 80%); and intraoperative and postoperative hemodynamic conditions 24 h after the surgery and adverse events (SMD = 0.78; 95% CI = 0.22 to 2.82; p = 0.70; I2 = 62%). Compared to a CB, a TAPB resulted in a small but significant reduction in additional analgesic requirement after surgery (OR 0.25; 95% CI 0.09 to 0.63; p = 0.004). Conclusions: TAPBs and CBs result in similar efficient early analgesia and safety profiles in children undergoing abdominal surgeries. Moreover, no disparities were observed for adverse effects between TAPBs and CBs.

Caudal block vs. transversus abdominis plane block for pediatric surgery: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Background

The caudal block and transversus abdominis plane block (TAP) are commonly used in combination with general anesthesia for pediatric lower abdominal, inguinal, and genitourinary surgeries. There is limited data directly comparing the impact of these techniques on recovery. In this meta-analysis, we compare the duration of postoperative analgesia between these two techniques.

Objective

This review examined the duration of analgesia in pediatric patients (age 0-18 years) undergoing surgery who received caudal or TAP block after induction of general anesthesia. The primary outcome was duration of analgesia, defined as the time to first rescue analgesic dose. Secondary outcomes included number of rescue analgesic doses, acetaminophen usage within 24 h postoperatively, 24 h pain score area under the curve, and postoperative nausea and vomiting.

Evidence review

We systematically searched Pubmed, Central, EMBASE, CINAHL, Google Scholar, Web of Science citation index, the US clinical trials register, and abstracts from prominent 2020-2022 anesthesia conferences for randomized controlled trials that compared these blocks and reported analgesia duration.

Findings

Twelve RCTs inclusive of 825 patients were identified. TAP block was associated with longer analgesia duration (Mean difference = 1.76 h, 95% CI: 0.70-2.81, p = 0.001) and reduced doses of rescue analgesic within 24 h (Mean difference = 0.50 doses, 95% CI: 0.02-0.98, p = 0.04). No statistically significant differences were detected in other outcomes.

Conclusion

This meta-analysis suggests that TAP block provides greater duration of analgesia than caudal block after pediatric surgeries. TAP block was also associated with fewer rescue analgesic doses in the first 24 h without increased pain scores.

Systematic review registration

https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/prospero/display_record.php?RecordID=380876, identifier: CRD42022380876.