Dexamethasone/ Erector Spinae Plane Block Analgesia in Laparoscopic Cholecystectomy

Dexamethasone as a Bupivacaine Adjuvant in Ultrasound-guided Erector Spinae Plane Block for Patients Undergoing Laparoscopic Cholecystectomy: a Randomized Double-blind Study

Although considered a minimally invasive procedure, laparoscopic cholecystectomy (LC) frequently results in moderate to severe immediate postoperative pain.

Although considered a minimally invasive procedure, laparoscopic cholecystectomy (LC) frequently results in moderate to severe immediate postoperative pain. In addition to predominant visceral pain, nearly half of all patients suffer from shoulder pain in the early postoperative period. The most likely reason is sub-diaphragmatic irritation, which is transmitted by the phrenic nerve, causing referred pain in the C4 dermatome. Due to multiple sources of pain, multimodal analgesia approaches have been used in the perioperative period following LC.

Inclusion Criteria:

• Patients undergoing elective LC under general anesthesia, ASA status I-II, aged from 18 to 65 years old of both sex

Exclusion Criteria:

• Contraindications to regional block (coagulopathy, infection at the needle insertion site, or diaphragmatic paralysis)
• Altered conscious level
• Pregnancy
• Body mass index (BMI > 35)
• Advanced hepatic or renal failure
• Chronic opioid consumption