Use of Nerve Block in Addition to General Anesthesia Reduces Pain and Time in Post-Anesthesia Care Unit After Rotator Cuff Repair

Abstract

Purpose To determine if use of nerve blocks during rotator cuff repairs will result in an overall improvement of post-operative pain and reduction of time spent in the post-anesthesia care unit (PACU) without any increases in avoidable emergency department (ED) or urgent care (UC) visits within 7 and 30 days. Methods A large integrated health system was queried for all rotator cuff repairs conducted between January 1, 2016 and December 31, 2017 and separated into two groups: general anesthesia only or general anesthesia with an additional nerve block. Maximal pain scores in the PACU, time spent in the PACU and avoidable visits to the ED/UC within 7 and 30 days were recorded and compared. Results A total of 3,128 patients undergoing rotator cuff repair were included (39.5% received general anesthesia with a nerve block). The use of an additional nerve block was associated with a 1.3 (p < 0.001) point reduction in maximum reported pain scores and a 15.7 (11.9%, p < 0.001) minute reduction in PACU time per patient. Furthermore, there was no statistically significant difference in avoidable ED/UC visits within 7 (p = 0.432) and 30 (p = 0.454) days between groups. Conclusion The use of a nerve block in addition to general anesthesia was associated with a significant reduction in maximum pain scores and time spent in the PACU with no increases in avoidable ED/UC visits within 7 or 30 days. Therefore, use of a nerve block in addition to general anesthesia could lead to longitudinally decreased costs in the rotator cuff repair surgical pathway. Level of Evidence III