Paravertebral blocks provide superior same-day recovery over general anesthesia for patients undergoing inguinal hernia repair.

Inguinal herniorrhaphy is commonly performed on an outpatient basis under nerve blocks or local or general anesthesia (GA). Our hypothesis is that use of paravertebral blocks (PVB) as the sole anesthetic technique will result in shorter time to achieve home readiness and improved same-day recovery over a 'fast-track' GA. Fifty patients were randomly assigned to receive either PVB or GA under standardized protocols (PVB = 0.75% ropivacaine, followed by propofol sedation; GA = dolasetron 12.5 mg, propofol induction, rocuronium, endotracheal intubation; desflurane; bupivacaine 0.25% for field block). Eligibility for postanesthetic care unit (PACU) bypass and data on time-to-postoperative pain, ambulation, home readiness, and incidence of adverse events were collected. More patients in the PVB group (71%) met the criteria to bypass the postanesthetic care unit compared with patients in the GA group (8%; P < 0.001). Only 3 (13%) of patients in the PVB group requested treatment for pain while in the hospital, compared with 12 (50%) patients in the GA group, despite infiltration with local anesthetic (P = 0.005). Patients in the PVB group were able to ambulate earlier (102 +/- 55 minutes) than those in the GA group (213 +/- 108 minutes; P < 0.001). Time-to-home readiness and discharge times were shorter for patients in the PVB group (156 +/- 60 and 253 +/- 37 minutes) compared with those in the GA group (203 +/- 91 and 218 +/- 93 minutes) (P < 0.001). Adverse events (e.g., nausea, vomiting, sore throat) and pain requiring treatment in the first 24 hours occurred less frequently in patients who had received PVB than in those who had received GA. In outpatients undergoing inguinal herniorrhaphy, PVB resulted in faster time to home readiness and was associated with fewer adverse events and better analgesia before discharge than GA.