Pre-operative pain management with nerve block in patients with hip fractures: a randomized, controlled trial

Pain management in patients with hip fractures is a major challenge for emergency care. The objective of this study was to evaluate whether the supplementation of pre-operative analgesia with low-dose fascia iliaca compartment block (FICB) compared with placebo would improve pain relief in patients with hip fractures.

A double-blind, randomized, controlled trial was conducted on 127 patients. At hospital admission, a low-dose FICB was administered to patients with hip fractures as a supplement to regular pre-operative analgesia. Patients with and without cognitive impairment were included. The instruments used were a visual analogue scale (VAS), a numerical rating scale and a tool for behavior related pain assessment. The primary endpoint was the change in reported pain on movement from hospital admission to two hours after FICB.

The intervention group showed improved pain management by mean VAS score for pain on movement compared with the control group (p = 0.002).

Our results support the use of low-dose FICB as a pain-relieving adjuvant to other analgesics when administered to patients with a hip fracture.