• Audrey L Stokes, Sanjib D Adhikary, Ashley Quintili, Frances J Puleo, Christine S Choi, Christopher S Hollenbeak, and Evangelos Messaris.
• 1 Department of Surgery, College of Medicine, Pennsylvania State University, Hershey, Pennsylvania 2 Department of Anesthesiology and Perioperative Medicine, College of Medicine, Pennsylvania State University, Hershey, Pennsylvania 3 Department of Pharmacy, College of Medicine, Pennsylvania State University, Hershey, Pennsylvania 4 Department of Public Health Sciences, College of Medicine, Pennsylvania State University, Hershey, Pennsylvania.
• Dis. Colon Rectum. 2017 Feb 1; 60 (2): 170-177.

BackgroundEnhanced recovery protocols frequently use multimodal postoperative analgesia to improve postoperative outcomes in patients undergoing colorectal surgery.ObjectiveThe purpose of this study was to evaluate liposomal bupivacaine use in transversus abdominis plane blocks on postoperative pain scores and opioid use after colorectal surgery.DesignThis was a retrospective cohort study comparing outcomes between patients receiving nonliposomal anesthetic (n = 104) and liposomal bupivacaine (n = 303) blocks.SettingsThe study was conducted at a single tertiary care center.PatientsPatients included those identified within an institutional database as inpatients undergoing colorectal procedures between 2013 and 2015 who underwent transversus abdominis plane block for perioperative analgesia.Main Outcome MeasuresThe study measured postoperative pain scores and opioid requirements.ResultsPatients receiving liposomal bupivacaine had significantly lower pain scores for the first 24 to 36 postoperative hours. Pain scores were similar after 36 hours. The use of intravenous opioids among the liposomal bupivacaine group decreased by more than one third during the hospitalization (99.1 vs 64.5 mg; p = 0.040). The use of ketorolac was also decreased (49.0 vs 18.3 mg; p < 0.001). In subgroup analysis, the decrease in opioid use was observed between laparoscopic and robotic procedures but not with laparotomies. No significant differences were noted in the use of oral opioids, acetaminophen, or ibuprofen. Postoperative length of stay and total cost were decreased in the liposomal bupivacaine group but did not achieve statistical significance.LimitationsThe study was limited by its retrospective, single-center design and heterogeneity of block administration.ConclusionsAttenuated pain scores observed with liposomal bupivacaine use were associated with significantly lower intravenous opioid and ketorolac use, suggesting that liposomal bupivacaine-containing transversus abdominis plane blocks are well aligned with the opioid-reducing goals of many enhanced recovery protocols.

46 keywords...

hide…