• Tatjana Stopar Pintaric, Peter Veranic, Admir Hadzic, Manoj Karmakar, and Erika Cvetko.
• Department of Anesthesiology and Intensive Therapy, University Medical Center Ljubljana, Ljubljana, Slovenia. tatjanas38@gmail.com
• Reg Anesth Pain Med. 2012 Mar 1;37(2):215-8.

Background And ObjectivesAnesthesia and analgesia with paravertebral block are reportedly variable. Existence of an endothoracic fascia has been proposed as one of the possible mechanisms leading to variability. We undertook an electron-microscopy imaging study to investigate the endothoracic fascia in the thoracic paravertebral space (TPS) in rats.MethodsMale Wistar rats were studied in accordance with the principles of laboratory animal care. After the rats were euthanized in a CO2 chamber, the thoracic paravertebral tissues were removed en bloc and cut into consecutive transverse sections of approximately 3 mm. Stereomicroscopy and electron-microscopy assessments were performed by 2 independent observers.ResultsThe endothoracic fascia was consistently identified in all specimens. The fascia was located between the parietal pleura and the innermost intercostal muscles or ribs. Its thickness ranged from 15 to 27 μm (mean, 20 ± 3 μm). The endothoracic fascia divided the TPS in 2 compartments: one, extrapleural and anterolateral (EPC); another, subendothoracic and posteromedial (SETC). The spinal nerves with their ganglia were found within SETC, whereas the sympathetic ganglia were consistently located within the EPC.ConclusionsThe endothoracic fascia in rats appears to divide the TPS into EPC and SETC. These anatomic characteristics may have implications in thoracic paravertebral blockade.

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