Catheterization in an ultrasound-guided thoracic paravertebral block using thoracoscopy

Thoracic paravertebral block (TPVB) is an efficient alternative to epidural anesthesia. The location of a catheter within the thoracic paravertebral space (TPVS) has been examined in the human cadaver studies, but it is unclear how it goes into the TPVS during catheterization. In this report, thoracoscopy was used to observe the thoracic cavity in real-time during a parasagittal in-plane approach of ultrasound-guided TPVB. During thoracoscopy, we observed whether a paravertebral catheter could be advanced caudally beyond the ribs into the neighboring TPVS. Our result demonstrated that the catheter was difficult to be advanced beyond the ribs and confined within the same level of TPVS as where it was inserted. In the previous thoracoscopic observation of the paravertebral spread, we assumed that the local anesthetic acts most strongly at the intercostal level of the injection. Therefore, we recommend to insert the catheter for TPVB at the level corresponding to the incision site of thoracotomy.