Background: This study aimed to determine the character of pain after laparoscopic cholecystectomy and its relief with 0.5% bupivacaine-soaked Surgicel placed in the gallbladder bed.
Methods: For this study, 60 patients with chronic cholecystitis were divided into four groups of 15 each: group A (bupivacaine-soaked Surgicel kept in gallbladder bed), group B (bupivacaine infiltrated at trocar sites), group C (bupivacaine infiltrated into the gallbladder bed and at trocar sites, and group D (normal saline in the gallbladder bed and at trocar sites). Postoperatively, the character of pain was noted, and its relief was assessed with visual analog scale (VAS) scoring.
Results: The findings showed that 78.33% of the patients had visceral pain, 70% experienced parietal, and 23.33% reported shoulder pain after laparoscopic cholecystectomy. The visceral pain was significantly less in the group A patients than in the control subjects (p < 0.05), and none of them experienced shoulder pain. The mean VAS score at 4, 8, and, 24 h in the group A patients also was less than in control group D: 26.37 +/- 16.24 versus 38.30 +/- 9.51, 23.23 +/- 14.28 versus 33.73 +/- 7.96, and 18.36 +/- 13.00 versus 28.60 +/- 9.42, respectively. Trocar-site infiltration alone was not effective in relieving the parietal pain.
Conclusion: Visceral pain is prominent after laparoscopic cholecystectomy and can be effectively controlled by 0.5% bupivacaine-soaked Surgicel in the gallbladder bed alone. Trocar-site infiltration alone is ineffective.