Persistent postmastectomy pain and pain-related physical and emotional functioning with and without a continuous paravertebral nerve block: a prospective 1-year follow-up assessment of a randomized, triple-masked, placebo-controlled study

Ann Surg Oncol. 2015;22(6):2017-25. doi: 10.1245/s10434-014-4248-7. Epub 2014 Nov 21.

Abstract

Background: In a previous randomized, triple-masked, placebo-controlled study, the authors demonstrated that extending a single-injection paravertebral nerve block with a multiple-day perineural local anesthetic infusion improves analgesia and decreases pain-related dysfunction during the 3-day infusion but not subsequent to catheter removal within 1 month after mastectomy. This report describes a prospective follow-up study of the previously published trial to investigate the possibility that extending a single-injection paravertebral block with a multiple-day infusion may decrease persistent postsurgical pain as well as pain-induced emotional and functional dysfunction 1 year after mastectomy.

Methods: Subjects undergoing uni- or bilateral mastectomy received unilateral (n = 24) or bilateral (n = 36) single-injection thoracic paravertebral block(s) with ropivacaine and perineural catheter(s). The subjects were randomized to receive either ropivacaine 0.4 % (n = 30) or normal saline (n = 30) via their catheters until the catheters were removed on postoperative day 3. Chronic pain and pain-related physical and emotional dysfunction were measured using the Brief Pain Inventory (BPI).

Results: No statistically significant difference between treatments 3 months after surgery was observed with the BPI. In contrast, after 12 months, only 4 subjects (13 %) who had received a perineural ropivacaine infusion reported pain-induced dysfunction compared with 14 (47 %) who had received saline infusion (P = 0.011). At 12 months, the mean BPI was 1.6 ± 4.6 for the subjects who received ropivacaine versus 5.9 ± 11.3 for the subjects who received saline (P = 0.007).

Conclusions: Adding a multiple-day, continuous ropivacaine infusion to a single-injection ropivacaine paravertebral nerve block may result in a lower incidence of pain as well as pain-related physical and emotional dysfunction 1 year after mastectomy.

Publication types

  • Comparative Study
  • Randomized Controlled Trial
  • Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Adult
  • Amides / administration & dosage
  • Anesthetics, Local / administration & dosage
  • Breast Neoplasms / pathology
  • Breast Neoplasms / psychology*
  • Breast Neoplasms / surgery*
  • Female
  • Follow-Up Studies
  • Humans
  • Infusions, Parenteral
  • Mastectomy / adverse effects*
  • Middle Aged
  • Nerve Block*
  • Pain Measurement
  • Pain, Postoperative / drug therapy
  • Pain, Postoperative / etiology*
  • Prognosis
  • Prospective Studies
  • Ropivacaine
  • Stress, Psychological / etiology*

Substances

  • Amides
  • Anesthetics, Local
  • Ropivacaine