Does the addition of rectus sheath block for postoperative analgesia actually enhance patient recovery after open aortic surgery?

With great interest we read the recent article by Cleary and colleagues,1 which determined the effects of adding a continuous rectus sheath block (RSB) for postoperative pain control on opioid consumptions and recovery of patients after open abdominal aortic surgery in a small-sample retrospective research. They showed that the addition of a continuous RSB resulted in decreased opioid consumptions during hospital stay and at discharge, with shortened time to extubation and length of stay. We congratulate the authors for their work that attempted to explore postoperative regional analgesia technique for enhancing recovery after open abdominal aortic surgery, but wish to suggest our questions on methodology and results of this study.

Source: Annals of Vascular Surgery - April 1, 2024 Category: Surgery Authors: Ling Zhang, Fu-Shan Xue, Yu-Jing Yuan Tags: Correspondence Source Type: research