Research study to determine if putting local anesthetic through one or two tiny tubes next to the nerves that go to the area the patients are having surgery on (abdomen or pelvis), will improve pain control following surgery. This study will also help determine if patients require fewer pain pills, experience fewer sleep disturbances, and are more satisfied with their postoperative pain control.
Specific Aim: To determine if adding a continuous Transversus Abdominis Plane nerve block to a single-injection nerve block results in improved postoperative pain control. Hypothesis 1: Adding a continuous Transversus Abdominis Plane nerve block to a single-injection nerve block results in lower average pain scores during movement the day following surgery. Specific Aim2: To determine if adding a continuous Transversus Abdominis Plane nerve block to a single-injection nerve block results in decreased average pain scores, opioid use, sleep disturbances, and improved patient satisfaction. Hypothesis 2: Adding a continuous Transversus Abdominis Plane nerve block to a single-injection nerve block results in decreased average pain scores, oral opioid consumption, sleep disturbances, and improved patient satisfaction the day following surgery.
Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Purpose
TREATMENT
Masking
QUADRUPLE
Enrollment
20
Subject will be randomized to one of two groups: Saline infused TAP catheter following surgery for 0-2 days or ropivacaine infused TAP catheter following surgery for 0-2 days. All patients will be given a single injection of ropivacaine prior to surgery. Research staff will follow all patients for two days following surgery or while they have TAP catheter in.
UCSD Medical Center
San Diego, California, United States
The primary outcome measurement will be the average pain with movement on postoperative day 1 as measured by 0-10 scale, where 0=no pain and 10=worst imaginable pain.
Time frame: 1 day
Pain with movement on second day following surgery, as measured by 0-10 scale (where 0=no pain and 10=worst imaginable pain).
Time frame: 2 days
Total opioid consumption per day following surgery as measured by the number of opioid pills consumed per day.
Time frame: Day 1 and 2 following surgery
Sleep disturbances, measured on days 1 and 2 following surgery, as asked by research staff during follow-up phone calls.
Time frame: Days 1 and 2 following surgery
Patient satisfaction of pain control as measured on a 0-10 scale where 0=very unsatisfied and 10=very satisfied with pain control
Time frame: Day 2 following surgery
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