Background
Inguinal field block (IFB) is a recommended technique for pain control after inguinal
hernia repair but is also underused by surgeons. Currently, there is no decisive evidence
on which technique, IFB or spinal anesthesia block (SAB), provides better pain control
during the first day after hernia repair. In this study, we compared ultrasound-guided
IFB performed by anesthesiologists and SAB for pain control during the first day after
hernia repair.
Methods
We compared static and dynamic pain scores measured with a numerical rating scale
in 86 male patients scheduled for elective unilateral inguinal hernia repair with
either ultrasound-guided IFB (n = 42) or SAB (n = 44).
Results
Dynamic and static pain at 4 hours (P < .01, r > 0.34, “large effect size”), and dynamic pain the morning after operation (P = .04, r > 0.20, “medium effect size”) were less in the field block group compared with the
SAB group. Postoperative analgesic consumption was reduced during hospital stay (P = .005, r > 0.34, “large effect size”) and for 7 postoperative days in the field block group
(P = .03, r > 0.20, “medium effect size”).
Conclusion
In this study, ultrasound-guided IFB provided lesser dynamic pain scores during the
first postoperative day and reduced use of analgesics for 1 week compared with spinal
anesthesia after inguinal hernia repair. Our technique could become a substitute performed
by anesthesiologists in settings in which IFB is not performed routinely by surgeons.
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Article info
Publication history
Accepted:
September 3,
2014
Identification
Copyright
© 2015 Elsevier Inc. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
