• S Tolchard, R Davies, and S Martindale.
• North Bristol NHS Trust, Bristol, UK.
• J Anaesthesiol Clin Pharmacol. 2012 Jul 1;28(3):339-43.

BackgroundPain experienced following laparoscopic cholecystectomy is largely contributed by the anterior abdominal wall incisions. This study investigated whether subcostal transversus abdominis (STA) block was superior to traditional port-site infiltration of local anesthetic in reducing postoperative pain, opioid consumption, and time for recovery.Materials And MethodsForty-three patients presenting for day case laparoscopic cholecystectomy were randomly allocated to receive either an ultrasound-guided STA block (n = 21) or port-site infiltration of local anesthetic (n = 22). Visual analog pain scores were measured at 1 and 4 h postoperatively to assess pain severity, and opioid requirement was measured in recovery and up to 8 h postoperatively. The time to discharge from recovery was recorded.ResultsSTA block resulted in a significant reduction in serial visual pain analog score values and significantly reduced the fentanyl requirement in recovery by >35% compared to the group that received local port-site infiltration (median 0.9 vs. 1.5 μcg/kg). Furthermore, STA block was associated with nearly a 50% reduction in overall 8-h equivalent morphine consumption (median 10 mg vs. 19 mg). In addition, STA block significantly reduced median time to discharge from recovery from 110 to 65 min.ConclusionThe results suggest that STA block provides superior postoperative analgesia and reduces opioid requirement following laparoscopic cholecystectomy. It may also improve theater efficiency by reducing time to discharge from the recovery unit.

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