Liposomal Bupivacaine for Pain Control After Rotator Cuff Repair

Overview

The use of an interscalene block (ISB) is often associated with rebound pain that could be avoided through adjunctive therapy with longer duration. Administration of a liposomal bupivacaine (LB) field block in addition to ISB would overcome this rebound pain to provide greater pain relief and reduce opiate consumption when compared to ISB alone. 50 patients were recruited and randomized into groups that either received or did not receive an intraoperative LB field block in addition to standard ISB administration. Visual Analog Scale (VAS) pain scores and narcotic consumption were recorded over the five-day postoperative period to determine the effectiveness of LB pain relief.

Arthroscopic rotator cuff repair (ARCR) provides excellent clinical outcomes but is often associated with significant postoperative pain. As rotator cuff repair procedures become increasingly more common, these procedures and the narcotic prescriptions which accompany them may contribute to the rising opioid epidemic. The use of intraoperative local and regional anesthesia or field blocks, in conjunction with multimodal pharmacological strategies, is a widely accepted approach for managing surgical pain and reducing opiate use. The purpose of this study was to determine whether using a field block of liposomal bupivacaine (LB) in addition to an interscalene block (ISB) would provide greater pain relief and reduction in opiate consumption when compared to ISB alone. The study enrolled 50 patients undergoing primary ARCR surgery. Patients were randomized to receiving intraoperative liposomal bupivacaine or not and provided with postoperative "Pain Journals" to document their daily pain on a visual analog scale (VAS) and to track their daily opioid consumption during the first five post-operative days.