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Updated: Jul 1, 2025

Author Spotlight: A Non-Intubated Video-Assisted Thoracoscopic Surgery with Multimodal Analgesia and Sevoflurane Inhalation Anesthesia
Published on: May 26, 2023
Fascial plane blocks for cardiothoracic surgery: a narrative review
Paolo Capuano1, Giuseppe Sepolvere2, Antonio Toscano3
1Department of Anesthesia and Intensive Care, Istituto Mediterraneo per i Trapianti e Terapie ad alta Specializzazione (IRCCS-ISMETT), UPMCI (University of Pittsburgh Medical Center Italy), Palermo, Italy. paolocapuano89@gmail.com.
Abstract:
In recent years, there has been a growing awareness of the limitations and risks associated with the overreliance on opioids in various surgical procedures, including cardiothoracic surgery.This shift on pain management toward reducing reliance on opioids, together with need to improve patient outcomes, alleviate suffering, gain early mobilization after surgery, reduce hospital stay, and improve patient satisfaction and functional recovery, has led to the development and widespread implementation of enhanced recovery after surgery (ERAS) protocols.In this context, fascial plane blocks are emerging as part of a multimodal analgesic in cardiac surgery and as alternatives to conventional neuraxial blocks for thoracic surgery, and there is a growing body of evidence suggesting their effectiveness and safety in providing pain relief for these procedures. In this review, we discuss the most common fascial plane block techniques used in the field of cardiothoracic surgery, offering a comprehensive overview of regional anesthesia techniques and presenting the latest evidence on the use of chest wall plane blocks specifically in this surgical setting.
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