Spinal Anesthesia Using Ropivacaine Leads to Earlier Ambulation After Total Hip Arthroplasty.

Spinal anesthesia has grown in popularity for total hip arthroplasty (THA) due to its documented low complications. However, the use of a local anesthetic agent dictates the recovery of neuraxial blockade. Bupivacaine has emerged as the most popular choice, but its relatively long-acting effect limits its use with rapid recovery. Although not well studied, ropivacaine may offer a viable alternative with shorter-acting properties. Primary unilateral THA patients who received either ropivacaine or bupivacaine spinal anesthesia were retrospectively reviewed. These groups were compared for common demographics, such as age, sex, and body mass index. The primary outcomes included postoperative ambulation time and distance, post-anesthesia care unit transition time, and selective complications. Five hundred three patients were included. Of these, 227 received ropivacaine and 276 received bupivacaine. The ropivacaine group showed superior ambulation time and distance, quicker post-anesthesia care unit transition, and equivalent complications compared with the bupivacaine group. Ropivacaine shows a clear advantage over bupivacaine for spinal anesthesia during THA when considering rapid recovery. Its use should be strongly considered, especially in the ambulatory setting. [Orthopedics. 2021;44(3):e343-e346.].

Local infiltration analgesia followed by continuous infusion of local anesthetic solution for total hip arthroplasty: a prospective, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study.

BACKGROUND: We studied the efficacy of local infiltration analgesia in surgical wounds with 0.2% ropivacaine (50 mL), ketorolac (15 mg), and adrenaline (0.5 mg) compared with that of local infiltration analgesia combined with continuous infusion of 0.2% ropivacaine as a method of pain control after total hip arthroplasty. We hypothesized that as a component of multimodal analgesia, local infiltration analgesia followed by continuous infusion of ropivacaine would result in reduced postoperative opioid consumption and lower pain scores compared with infiltration alone, and that both of these techniques would be superior to placebo. METHODS: In this prospective, double-blind, placebo-controlled study, 105 patients were randomized into three groups: Group I, in which patients received infiltration with ropivacaine, ketorolac, and adrenaline followed by continuous infusion of 0.2% ropivacaine at 5 mL/hr; Group II, in which patients received infiltration with ropivacaine, ketorolac, and adrenaline followed by continuous infusion of saline solution at 5 mL/hr; and Group III, in which patients received infiltration with saline solution followed by continuous infusion of saline solution at 5 mL/hr.All patients received celecoxib, pregabalin, and acetaminophen perioperatively and patient-controlled analgesia; surgery was performed under general anesthesia. Before wound closure, the tissues and periarticular space were infiltrated with ropivacaine, ketorolac, and adrenaline or saline solution and a fenestrated catheter was placed. The catheter was attached to a pump prefilled with either 0.2% ropivacaine or saline solution set to infuse at 5 mL/hr.The primary outcome measure was postoperative opioid consumption and the secondary outcome measures were pain scores, adverse side effects, and patient satisfaction. RESULTS: There were no differences between groups in the administration of opioids in the operating room, in the recovery room, or on the surgical floor. The pain scores on recovery room admission and discharge and the floor were low and similar between groups. There were no differences in the incidence of adverse side effects among groups. Patient satisfaction with pain management was similar in all groups. CONCLUSIONS: Local infiltration analgesia alone or followed by continuous infusion of ropivacaine as part of multimodal analgesia provides no additional analgesic benefit or reduction in opioid consumption compared with placebo following total hip arthroplasty. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: Therapeutic level I. See Instructions for Authors for a complete description of levels of evidence.