Arthroscopy : the journal of arthroscopic & related surgery : official publication of the Arthroscopy Association of North America and the International Arthroscopy Association
-
Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative Study Clinical Trial
The efficacy of femoral nerve block in pain reduction for outpatient hamstring anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction: a double-blind, prospective, randomized trial.
The purpose of this study was to assess the efficacy of intraoperative femoral nerve block (FNB) in the reduction of postoperative pain following anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) hamstring reconstruction. Patients undergoing primary ACL reconstruction with hamstring tendon graft under general anesthetic who had signed an informed consent were included in the study. Patients were stratified to 4 surgeons and randomized to FNB with 0.25% bupivacaine or placebo of normal saline injected into the femoral nerve sheath before reversal of the general anesthetic. ⋯ In conclusion, FNB may reduce pain on the night of surgery. However, this may not be clinically significant. FNB is not recommended at this time for use in outpatient ACL reconstruction with hamstring graft.