Journal of Clinical Medicine
Comparison of External Oblique Intercostal Plane Block and Subcostal Transversus Abdominis Plane Block for Postoperative Analgesia After Open Radical Gastrectomy: A Single-Blind Randomized Trial
By Uson Mamasaliev, Ahmet Taşar, Erhan Sönmez and 2 others.
Abstract
Background
Ultrasound-guided fascial plane blocks are increasingly incorporated into multimodal analgesia for upper abdominal surgery. Although both the external oblique intercostal plane (EOIP) block and the subcostal transversus abdominis plane (scTAP) block have been used for postoperative analgesia, evidence directly comparing their efficacy after open radical gastrectomy is lacking. We compared the postoperative analgesic efficacy of bilateral EOIP and bilateral scTAP blocks in patients undergoing open radical gastrectomy.
Methods
In this prospective, single-center, randomized, patient-blinded trial, 60 adults undergoing elective open radical gastrectomy were randomly assigned to receive either a bilateral ultrasound-guided EOIP block or a bilateral scTAP block. The primary outcome was cumulative morphine consumption during the first 24 postoperative hours. Secondary outcomes included postoperative Numeric Rating Scale (NRS) scores, rescue analgesic requirements, postoperative nausea and vomiting (PONV), and length of hospital stay.