• Hong Yu, Zhao Xu, Shun-Hui Dai, Jia-Li Jiang, Lei-Lei He, Jian-Qiao Zheng, and Hai Yu.
• Department of Anesthesiology, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China; The Research Units of West China (2018RU012), Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Chengdu, China.
• J. Cardiothorac. Vasc. Anesth. 2021 Aug 1; 35 (8): 2438-2446.

ObjectivesSternal incisions can generate persistent and intense post-sternotomy pain. Propofol has been shown to improve postoperative analgesia, but the preventive effect on persistent pain after cardiac surgery is unknown. The hypothesis of the present study was that intraoperative propofol-based anesthesia compared with volatile anesthesia could reduce the risk of chronic pain after cardiac surgery.DesignA single-center, two-arm, patient-and-evaluator-blinded, randomized controlled trial.SettingA single major urban teaching and university hospital.PatientsFive-hundred adult patients undergoing cardiac surgery via sternotomy randomly were assigned. With six withdrawals from the study and five from surgery, 244 in the total intravenous anesthesia group and 245 in the volatile group were included in the modified intention-to-treat analysis.InterventionsPatients randomly were assigned to receive either propofol-based total intravenous anesthesia or volatile anesthesia during surgery.Measurements And Main ResultsThe primary outcomes were the incidence of pain at three, six, and 12 months after surgery defined as pain score >0 on the numeric rating scale. The secondary outcomes included acute pain, opioid use during the first 72 hours after surgery, and quality of life. The use of propofol did not significantly affect chronic pain at three months (55.4% v 52.9%, difference 2.5%, 95% confidence interval [CI] -6.6 to 11.6; p = 0.656), six months (35.5% v 37.5%, difference -2.0%, 95% CI -10.9 to 6.9; p = 0.657), or 12 months (18.2% v 20.7%, difference -2.5%, 95% CI -9.8 to 4.8; p = 0.495) compared with volatile anesthetics. Furthermore, there were no differences in acute pain score; morphine-equivalent consumption during the first 72 hours; and quality of life at three, six, and 12 months after surgery.ConclusionsIntraoperative administration of propofol did not reduce persistent pain after cardiac surgery compared with volatile anesthetics.Copyright © 2020 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

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