SAP Versus ESP Block in Multimodal Pain Management in Mini-invasive Thoracic Surgery: an Observational Prospective Multicentric Study

Blocco Del Dentato Anteriore e Blocco Del Muscolo Erettore Della Colonna Vertebrale Nella Gestione Multimodale Del Dolore in Chirurgia Toracica Mininvasiva: Studio Osservazionale Prospettico Multicentrico

Thoracic surgery is characterized by acute perioperative pain. There are different ways to provide analgesia, such as intravenous analgesics (opioids or non-opioids) or loco-regional procedures; these techniques are often used together in the context of a multimodal approach to pain management, in order to exploit their synergistic action and minimize side effects. In this observational prospective multicentric study the investigators evaluate the effectiveness of two routinely administered ultrasound guided loco-regional analgesic techniques in providing analgesia to patients undergoing mini-invasive lung-resective thoracic surgery. The two techniques compared are the serratus anterior plane (SAP) block and the erector spinae plane (ESP) block.

Whatever the loco-regional technique is (SAP block or ESP block), it must have been administered in the immediate preoperative phase; both procedures are routinely used for analgesic purpose in the clinical practice of the three centers involved in the study and are performed under ultrasound guide. Using medical records, data collected by Acute Pain Service nurses and patients' interviews useful data will be collected: demographic and clinical characteristics (age, sex, weight, comorbidities), surgical data (type of procedure, surgical approach and duration of surgery) and anesthesia data (type of block, dose and type of local anesthetic with record of potential side effects), intraoperative and postoperative opioid and non-opioid analgesic consumption (and rescue if needed) with record of potential side effects, pain evaluation in the first 24 hours after surgery and after at 3 months.

Inclusion Criteria:

• Lung-resective thoracic surgery (lobectomy, bilobectomy, segmentectomy and wedge resection) with videothoracoscopic or mini-thoracotomic approach (maximum duration 180 minutes)
• BMI ranging from 18 to 30
• Age > 18 years
• ASA I-III
• Ultrasound guided preoperative ESP block or SAP block
• Remifentanil as intraoperative opioid

Exclusion Criteria:

• Patient's refusal
• Weight < 50 kg
• Pregnancy
• Emergent surgery
• Chronic opioid therapy
• History of drug or benzodiazepine addiction or alcohol abuse
• Previous thoracic surgery