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Joint Diseases and
Related Surgery
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Original Article · Open access

Interscalene block applied by an experienced anesthesiologist has a good anesthetic effect, a long duration of action, and less postoperative pain after arthroscopic shoulder procedures independent of surgery type and operation duration

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Özlem Orhan

Department of Orthopedics and Traumatology, Harran University Faculty of Medicine, Şanlıurfa, Türkiye

Erdem Aras Sezgin

Department of Orthopedics and Traumatology, Medical Faculty Aksaray University, Aksaray, Türkiye

İrfan Güngör

Department of Anesthesiology and Reanimation, Gazi University Faculty of Medicine, Ankara, Türkiye

Mehmet Çetinkaya

Department of Orthopedics and Traumatology, Medicana International Istanbul Hospital, Istanbul, Türkiye

Muhammet Baybars Ataoğlu

Department of Orthopedics and Traumatology, Gazi University Faculty of Medicine, Ankara, Türkiye

Ulunay Kanatlı

Department of Orthopedics and Traumatology, Gazi University Faculty of Medicine, Ankara, Türkiye

Abstract

Objectives: This study aims to evaluate the severity of postoperative pain and the time to the onset of pain after arthroscopic surgical treatment of rotator cuff tear or instability under interscalene block.

Patients and methods: Between October 2015 and June 2016, a total of 172 patients (82 males, 90 females; mean age: 47.9±16.9 years; range, 15 to 83 years) who underwent shoulder arthroscopy under interscalene block by a single surgeon were retrospectively analyzed. The relationship between the postoperative 24-h Visual Analog Scale (VAS), the time to the onset of pain with the type of surgical procedure (rotator cuff repair, n=101 or instability surgery, n=71), and the duration of surgery (<30 min n=92; ≥30 min n=80) was examined.

Results: No significant relationship was found between the type of surgical procedure, VAS scores, and the onset of pain after the block (p=0.577 and p=0.780, respectively). No significant relationship was found between the operation duration, and VAS, and the onset of pain after the block (p=0.570 and p=0.408, respectively). The mean duration until the start of postoperative pain was 734±313 (range, 60 to 1,440) min. There was no statistically significant difference in the need for rescue analgesics at the postoperative 24th h and the duration of surgery between the two groups (p=0.393 and p=0.675, respectively).

Conclusion: Our study results show no significant difference in the time for the onset of postoperative pain and the VAS scores according to the characteristics of the surgical procedure, operation duration, or age and sex of the patient. Shoulder arthroscopy performed by experienced surgeons under interscalene block eliminates the need for analgesics within the first 12 h postoperatively.

Declarations

Ethics Committee Approval

The study protocol was approved by the Gazi University Clinical Research Ethics Committee (date: 08.05.2017, no: 233). The study was conducted in accordance with the principles of the Declaration of Helsinki.

Author Contributions

Idea/concept and design: Ö.O., M.B.A.; Data collection and/or processing: Ö.O., İ.G., M.Ç., U.K.; Analysis and/or interpretation: Ö.O., İ.G., M.Ç., U.K.; Control/ supervision: Ö.O., E.A.S, İ.G.; Literature review and writing the article: Ö.O., E.A.S.; Critical review: U.K.; References and fundings: Ö.O., M.B.A.; Materials: U.K., İ.G.

Conflict of Interest

The authors declared no conflicts of interest with respect to the authorship and/or publication of this article.

Financial Disclosure

The authors received no financial support for the research and/or authorship of this article.

Patient Consent for Publication

A written informed consent was obtained from the parents and/or legal guardians of the patients.

Data Sharing Statement

The data that support the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.

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