ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to compare the analgesic effect of surgical bilateral rectus sheath block (BRSB) and ultrasonography-guidance BRSB in patients undergoing single port laparoscopic surgery (SPLS) for ovarian cyst. STUDY DESIGN: Seventy-five patients were randomly allocated into three groups: the control and ultrasound (US)-guidance group (n=25, each) received BRSB with 10ml of normal saline or 0.5% ropivacaine bilaterally under US guidance at the end of surgery, respectively; the surgical group (n=25) received BRSB with10ml of 0.5% ropivacaine bilaterally just before suturing the surgical site. All patients received intravenous fentanyl 50µg for postoperative pain before emergence from anesthesia. Additional self-administered fentanyl and pain intensity were measured at postoperative 1, 6, 10 and 24h. RESULTS: Demographic characteristics showed no significant group-wise differences. The cumulative amount of fentanyl delivered was significantly lower in the US-guidance and surgical BRSB groups (189.20µg and 187.68µg, respectively) than the control group (286.40µg) on postoperative day 1 (P<0.001). At 24h, the median pain score was significantly lower only in the surgical BRSB group. In addition, opioid-related side effects were decreased in patients who received BRSB (control group 36% vs. US-guidance BRSB group 24% vs. surgical BRSB group 12%). CONCLUSIONS: Both US-guided and surgical BRSB were effective for pain control in patients undergoing SPLS. Thus, surgical BRSB can be performed by gynecologists intra-operatively, for post-operative pain management.
