Abstract
Objective
Our meta-analysis aimed to compare the analgesic effectiveness of ultrasound-guided preoperative erector spinae plane block (ESPB) versus paravertebral nerve block (PVB) in breast surgery.
Methods
PubMed, EMBASE and the Cochrane Library were searched for randomized controlled trials (RCTs) between January 1, 1980 and April 31, 2021 . The primary endpoints were perioperative pain score, analgesic consumption and assessment of block procedure. The secondary endpoints were intraoperative haemodynamic response, duration of surgery, postoperative antiemetic consumption and adverse effects.
Results
Four RCTs comprised of a total of 310 patients were included in our meta-analysis. No significant differences in the perioperative pain score and analgesic consumption were observed between ESPB and PVB in the operating room, post-anaesthesia care unit (PACU) and ward (at 1, 16, 12, and 24 hour, and the morning of postoperative day 1 (POD1) (all P > 0.05). Similarly, no significant differences in the duration of block, time to first analgesic, haemodynamic response, duration of surgery, postoperative antiemetic consumption and adverse effects were observed (all P > 0.05). However, our meta-analysis revealed that ultrasound-guided preoperative ESPB significantly reduced the duration of procedure time and frequency of guidance interventions, as well as increasing the block success rate among residents (all P < 0.05).
Conclusions
Both ultrasound-guided preoperative ESPB and PVB showed comparable analgesic effects in patients undergoing breast surgery. However, with a significantly shorter procedure time and higher block success rate, our findings suggest that ESPB may be a simple alternative to PVB in breast surgery.
