Bilateral Modified Thoracoabdominal Nerve Block Through a Perichondrial Approach in Patients Undergoing Major Abdominal Surgery: A Randomized Single-Blind Controlled Trial.

OBJECTIVE

Modified thoracoabdominal nerve block with a perichondrial approach (M-TAPA) provides effective analgesia in the anterior and lateral thoracoabdominal regions. Previous studies have shown the efficacy of M-TAPA in laparoscopic surgery. The primary aim of this study was to investigate the efficacy of M-TAPA block in patients undergoing open major abdominal surgery.

METHODS

This study was designed as a prospective, randomized, single-blind, controlled study. A total of 43 patients were included in the study. In group M-TAPA, the block was performed bilaterally at the end of the surgery. Local wound infiltration was performed on the control group. Postoperative analgesia was provided with patient-controlled intravenous morphine. When numeric rating scale (NRS) pain scores exceeded 4, rescue analgesia with tramadol was administered. The primary outcome of this study was to compare the 24-hour total morphine consumption. The secondary outcomes included comparing pain scores, rescue analgesia requirements, and patient satisfaction.

RESULTS

Regarding our primary outcome, median morphine consumption during the first 24 hours was lower in the M-TAPA group [16 (14-18)] than in the control group [24.5 (19.5-27)] ( < 0.01, 95% confidence interval: -9, 42 and -3.01). Additionally, NRS scores were significantly lower and patient satisfaction was significantly higher in the M-TAPA group. The need for rescue analgesics in the first 24 hours was comparable among the study groups.

CONCLUSION

The M-TAPA block is an effective abdominal wall block that can be considered part of multimodal analgesia in open major abdominal surgery.