• H-D Cai, C-Z Lin, C-X Yu, and X-Z Lin.
• Department of Anaesthesiology, First Affiliated Hospital of Fujian Medical University, and Department of Pharmacology, Fujian Medical University, Fujian, China.
• J. Int. Med. Res. 2012 Jan 1;40(4):1390-8.

ObjectiveTo compare the incidence of postoperative nausea and vomiting (PONV) and postoperative pain in thyroidectomy patients undergoing general anaesthesia, with or without bilateral superficial cervical plexus block (BSCPB).MethodsIn this prospective, randomized, double-blind study, adult patients scheduled for thyroid surgery under general anaesthesia were randomized to receive BSCPB with 20 ml 0.5% ropivacaine (ropivacaine group) or placebo (20 ml saline; saline group) before surgery. The incidence of PONV and postoperative pain, and the need for rescue antiemetics were assessed at 0-24 h postoperatively.ResultsData from 135 patients were evaluated and the incidence of PONV, the need for rescue antiemetics and the number of patients needing additional perioperative pain relief in the postanaesthetic care unit were significantly lower in the ropivacaine group compared with the saline group. Early postoperative (0-8 h) visual analogue scale pain scores were significantly lower in the ropivacaine group compared with the saline group.ConclusionsBSCPB with 0.5% ropivacaine administered before surgery can significantly reduce the incidence of PONV and early postoperative pain and also reduce perioperative opioid requirements in thyroidectomy patients undergoing general anaesthesia.

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