Andrea Saporito1, Marcello Ceppi2, Andreas Perren3, Davide La Regina4, Stefano Cafarotti4, Alain Borgeat5, José Aguirre6, Marc Van De Velde7, An Teunkens7. 1. Anesthesia Department, Bellinzona Regional Hospital, (Switzerland). 2. Clinical Epidemiology Unit, S. Martino University Hospital, Genoa, (Italy). 3. Intensive Care Unit, Bellinzona Regional Hospital, Switzerland. 4. Surgery Department, Bellinzona Regional Hospital, Switzerland. 5. Department of Anesthesiology, Balgrist University Hospital, Zurich, (Switzerland). Electronic address: alain.borgeat@balgrist.ch. 6. Department of Anesthesiology, Balgrist University Hospital, Zurich, (Switzerland). 7. Department of Anesthesiology, University Hospital of the KU, Leuven, Belgium.
Abstract
STUDY OBJECTIVE: Spinal anesthesia is well suited for day-care surgery, however a persisting motor block after surgery can delay discharge. Among the new drugs available, chloroprocaine has been associated with a short onset time, and motor block duration and a quicker discharge. However, it is not clear if those outcomes are clinically significantly superior compared to those associated with the use of low-dose hyperbaric bupivacaine. DESIGN: Aim of the study was to determine if spinal 2-chloroprocaine was superior to low-dose spinal bupivacaine regarding the following outcomes: onset time, block duration, time to ambulation and time to discharge. PATIENTS/ INTERVENTIONS: We performed a systematic literature search of the last 30 years using PubMed Embase and the Cochrane Controlled Trials Register. We included only blinded, prospective trials comparing chloroprocaine with a low dose of bupivacaine for spinal anesthesia. Low dose bupivacaine was defined as a dose of 10 mg or less. Outcomes of interest were time to motor block regression (primary outcome), time to ambulation and time to discharge (secondary outcomes), as indirect indicators of a complete recovery after spinal anesthesia. MAIN RESULTS: Compared to a low dose bupivacaine, spinal 2-chloroprocaine was associated with significantly faster motor and sensory block regression (pMD = -57 min-140.3 min; P = 0.015 and <0.001 respectively), a significantly shorter time to ambulation and an earlier discharge (pMD = -84.6 min; P < 0.001 and pMD = -88.6 min and <0.001 respectively). Onset time did not differ between the two drugs (pMD = -1.1 min; P = 0.118). CONCLUSIONS: Spinal 2-chloroprocaine has a shorter motor block duration, a significantly quicker time to ambulation and time to discharge compared to low dose hyperbaric bupivacaine and may be advantageous when spinal anesthesia is performed for day case surgery.
STUDY OBJECTIVE: Spinal anesthesia is well suited for day-care surgery, however a persisting motor block after surgery can delay discharge. Among the new drugs available, chloroprocaine has been associated with a short onset time, and motor block duration and a quicker discharge. However, it is not clear if those outcomes are clinically significantly superior compared to those associated with the use of low-dose hyperbaric bupivacaine. DESIGN: Aim of the study was to determine if spinal 2-chloroprocaine was superior to low-dose spinal bupivacaine regarding the following outcomes: onset time, block duration, time to ambulation and time to discharge. PATIENTS/ INTERVENTIONS: We performed a systematic literature search of the last 30 years using PubMed Embase and the Cochrane Controlled Trials Register. We included only blinded, prospective trials comparing chloroprocaine with a low dose of bupivacaine for spinal anesthesia. Low dose bupivacaine was defined as a dose of 10 mg or less. Outcomes of interest were time to motor block regression (primary outcome), time to ambulation and time to discharge (secondary outcomes), as indirect indicators of a complete recovery after spinal anesthesia. MAIN RESULTS: Compared to a low dose bupivacaine, spinal 2-chloroprocaine was associated with significantly faster motor and sensory block regression (pMD = -57 min-140.3 min; P = 0.015 and <0.001 respectively), a significantly shorter time to ambulation and an earlier discharge (pMD = -84.6 min; P < 0.001 and pMD = -88.6 min and <0.001 respectively). Onset time did not differ between the two drugs (pMD = -1.1 min; P = 0.118). CONCLUSIONS: Spinal 2-chloroprocaine has a shorter motor block duration, a significantly quicker time to ambulation and time to discharge compared to low dose hyperbaric bupivacaine and may be advantageous when spinal anesthesia is performed for day case surgery.