Ultrasound-guided, direct suprainguinal injection for fascia iliaca block for total hip arthroplasty: A retrospective...

Peripheral regional block combined with general anesthesia might be a preferable anesthetic regimen for elderly patients undergoing total hip arthroplasty.

To investigate whether ultrasound-guided, direct suprainguinal injection for fascia iliaca block accelerated recovery after general anesthesia and relieved postoperative pain after total hip arthroplasty.

Patients who underwent total hip arthroplasty under general anesthesia in 2015 or 2019 at The Second Affiliated Hospital of Xuzhou Medical University were retrospectively analyzed. The patients were grouped based on whether preoperative suprainguinal fascia iliaca block was performed or not. The time to tracheal extubation and time spent in the post-anesthesia care unit (PACU), intraoperative remifentanil dosage, fentanyl consumption in the PACU, postoperative cumulative fentanyl consumption within 48 h after operation, visual analogue scale at rest and during movement on the first and second days after surgery, and adverse reactions were compared.

Thirty-one elderly patients who underwent total hip arthroplasty were included in the study (block group, n = 16; no-block group, n = 15). The visual analog scale scores at rest and during movement on the first and second days were significantly lower in the block group than in the no-block group (all P < 0.05). Compared with the no-block group, the intraoperative remifentanil dosage was lower, the time to tracheal extubation and the time spent in the PACU were shorter in the block group (all P < 0.01). Fentanyl consumption in the PACU and postoperative cumulative fentanyl consumption in 48 h after operation were lower in the block group (all P < 0.01). The incidence of dizziness was higher in the no-block group than in the block group (P = 0.037).

Ultrasound-guided, direct suprainguinal injection for fascia iliaca block led to faster recovery after general anesthesia and early postoperative pain relief in elderly patients undergoing total hip arthroplasty.