Intraoperative perineural infiltration of lidocaine for acute postlaminectomy pain: preemptive analgesia in spinal surgery.

STUDY DESIGN: Prospective, cohort, and clinical study. SUMMARY OF BACKGROUND DATA: It was proven that effective control of postoperative pain in lumbar disk surgery improves the patient's recovery. Despite the many advances in surgical and nonsurgical techniques, the most accurate approach in pain relief is still under debate. OBJECTIVE: In this study, our aim was to determine whether neural root blockade before the onset of noxious stimuli could inhibit the production of pain. METHODS: Forty-five patients undergoing unilateral 1 spinal level (lumbar 5) hemipartial laminectomy were included in the study. In 20 of the patients (group 2), 0.5 mL 2% lidocaine was infiltrated onto the neural root immediately after the exposure; the 25 patients in the control group (group 1) were not injected. All patients were monitored regarding pain determination using a visual analog scale, and the exact time of analgesic requirement during the first postoperative day was noted. Total analgesic dose given during the first postoperative day was also recorded. RESULTS: Perineural lidocaine infiltration extended the early postoperative analgesic period. Although the pain was not completely suppressed, the lidocaine infiltration helped to manage the postoperative pain more effectively. The patients (group 2) who received lidocaine infiltration intraoperatively onto the neural root had a statistically significant longer time before analgesia requested (P<0.001) and also required significantly less analgesic when compared with the control group (P<0.001). CONCLUSIONS: For preemptive analgesia for acute postoperative pain in laminectomy surgery, which remains a major concern, we suggest that lidocaine infiltration onto the dorsal neural sheath immediately before retraction of the root may extend the time before analgesia requested and the total analgesic drug consumption.

Evaluation of total oxidative and antioxidative status in pediatric patients undergoing laparoscopic surgery.

OBJECTIVE: Reactive oxygen species (ROS) induced by several diseases can trigger oxidative stress. During laparoscopy, increased intraabdominal pressure caused by pneumoperitoneum may lead to splanchnic ischemia followed by reperfusion because of deflation. Because ischemia reperfusion creates oxidative stress, in this study, we aimed to investigate the oxidative-antioxidative status of the pediatric patients with laparoscopic surgery. METHODS: The children underwent laparoscopic procedures under general anesthesia, and they were mechanically ventilated. Blood samples were obtained after induction of anesthesia, at the end of the surgery, and were centrifuged at 3000 revolutions per minute for 10 minutes to separate plasma. The plasma total antioxidant status (TAS), total oxidant status (TOS), and oxidative stress index (OSI) were determined. RESULTS: Plasma TOS and OSI levels were significantly higher at the end of the surgery than after induction of anesthesia (P < .05 and P < .01, respectively). On the other hand, plasma TAS levels were lower in the end of the surgery than after induction of anesthesia (P < .05). CONCLUSIONS: These results suggest that ROS are generated during the laparoscopic procedure, possibly as a result of an ischemia-reperfusion phenomenon induced by the inflation and deflation of the pneumoperitoneum, which causes oxidative stress and consume plasma antioxidants.