[Beginning of continuous wound infusion with local anesthetics : With special emphasis on the contributions from Walter Capelle and Ewald Fulde].

Wound infusion with local anesthetics is a proven and safe analgesic procedure for modern perioperative patient care. Even the pioneers of local anesthesia practiced wound analgesia and emphasized the shortcomings of "single-shot" wound infusions. At the same time, they drew attention to the importance of long-lasting pain relief to prevent sequelae, especially after upper abdominal surgery with pneumonia, embolic events or postoperative ileus. In the early 1930s there were first sustained efforts to improve the efficiency and quality of pain therapy, especially after upper abdominal surgery by continuous wound infiltration with local anesthetics via intraoperatively introduced special cannulas. This measure was carried out to enable reduction in pain and allow early postoperative mobilization. The conceptual development of this pioneering analgesia method is closely connected with the names of the Berlin surgeons Walter Capelle and Ewald Fulde; however, their inaugurated and propagated therapy concept did not find the attention and dissemination that it deserved. This is a reason for us to remember their pioneering ideas on pain management in the context of current developments.