Preoperative Multimodal Analgesia Decreases Postanesthesia Care Unit Narcotic Use and Pain Scores in Outpatient Breast Surgery

Preoperative Multimodal Analgesia Decreases Postanesthesia Care Unit Narcotic Use and Pain Scores in Outpatient Breast Surgery

 by Barker, Jenny C.; DiBartola, Kaitlin; Wee, Corinne; Andonian, Nicole; Abdel-Rasoul, Mahmoud; Lowery, Deborah; Janis, Jeffrey E.  

Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery: October 2018 - Volume 142 - Issue 4 - p 443e–450e

Background: The opioid epidemic demands changes in perioperative pain management. Of the 33,000 deaths attributable to opioid overdose in 2015, half received prescription opioids. Multimodal analgesia is a practice-altering evolution that reduces reliance on opioid medications. Ambulatory breast surgery is an ideal opportunity to implement these strategies.

Methods: A retrospective review of 560 patients undergoing outpatient breast procedures was conducted. Patients received (1) no preoperative analgesia (n = 333); (2) intraoperative intravenous acetaminophen (n = 78); (3) preoperative oral acetaminophen and gabapentin (n = 95); or (4) preoperative oral acetaminophen, gabapentin and celecoxib (n = 54). Outcomes included postanesthesia care unit narcotic use, pain scores, postanesthesia care unit length of stay, rescue antiemetic use, and 30-day complications. Results: Both oral multimodal analgesia regimens significantly reduced postanesthesia care unit narcotic use (oral acetaminophen and gabapentin, 14.3 ± 1.7; oral gabapentin, acetaminophen, and celecoxib, 11.9 ± 2.2; versus no drug, 19.2 ± 1.1 mg oral morphine equivalents; p = 0.0006), initial pain scores (oral acetaminophen and gabapentin, 3.9 ± 0.4; oral gabapentin, acetaminophen, and celecoxib, 3.4 ± 0.7; versus no drug, 5.3 ± 0.3 on a 1 to 10 scale, p = 0.0002) and maximum pain scores (oral acetaminophen and gabapentin, 4.3 ± 0.4; oral gabapentin, acetaminophen, and celecoxib, 3.6 ± 0.7; versus no drug, 5.9 ± 0.3 on a 1 to 10 scale; p < 0.0001). Both oral regimens were better than no medications or intravenous acetaminophen alone in multivariate models after controlling for age, body mass index, American Society of Anesthesiologists class, length of surgery, prior narcotic prescription availability, and intraoperative local anesthetic. Postanesthesia care unit length of stay, antiemetic use, and 30-day complications were not different.

Conclusions: Preoperative oral multimodal analgesia reduces narcotic use and pain scores in outpatient breast plastic surgery. These regimens are inexpensive, improve pain control, and contribute to narcotic-sparing clinical practice in the setting of a national opioid epidemic. CLINICAL QUESTION/LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: Therapeutic, III.

Prospective, Randomized, Controlled Comparison of Bupivacaine versus Liposomal Bupivacaine for Pain Management after Unilateral Delayed Deep Inferior Epigastric Perforator Free Flap Reconstruction

Prospective, Randomized, Controlled Comparison of Bupivacaine versus Liposomal Bupivacaine for Pain Management after Unilateral Delayed Deep Inferior Epigastric Perforator Free Flap Reconstruction

 by Gatherwright, James; Knackstedt, Rebecca W.; Ghaznavi, Amir M.; Bernard, Steven; Schwarz, Graham; Moreira, Andrea; Gurunluoglu, Raffi; Djohan, Risal  

Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery: June 2018 - Volume 141 - Issue 6 - p 1327–1330

Summary: Effective postsurgical analgesia is a critical aspect of patient recovery. The goal of this prospective, randomized, controlled, blinded study was to examine the effect that liposomal bupivacaine delivered by means of a transversus abdominis plane block has on pain control in women undergoing unilateral deep inferior epigastric perforator flap reconstruction. Institutional review board approval was granted for this prospective study. Patients were eligible if they were undergoing unilateral, delayed deep inferior epigastric perforator flap reconstruction. Patients were randomized to one of three groups: liposomal bupivacaine transversus abdominis plane block, or bupivacaine pain pump. Charts were reviewed for demographics, length of stay, and postoperative narcotic use. There were eight patients in the liposomal bupivacaine and bupivacaine transversus abdominis plane block groups and five patients in the pain pump group. A retrospective cohort of six patients who did not receive any intervention was included. Patients who received a liposomal bupivacaine transversus abdominis plane block used statistically significantly less intravenous and total postoperative narcotics in milligrams and milligrams per kilogram per day compared with all other cohorts. They were able to get out of bed at an earlier time point. Overall hospital costs were similar among the groups. This is the first study to investigate liposomal bupivacaine delivered as a transversus abdominis plane block in a prospective, randomized, blinded study in women undergoing unilateral, delayed, abdominally based autologous breast reconstruction. The authors were able to demonstrate a significant reduction in intravenous and total narcotic use when a liposomal bupivacaine transversus abdominis plane block was used. Future studies are needed to prospectively investigate the effect that liposomal bupivacaine would have on immediate and bilateral reconstructions.