Intraperitoneal pre-insufflation of 0.125% bupivaciane with tramadol for postoperative pain relief following laparoscopic cholecystectomy.

Background And Aims: Laparoscopic cholecystectomy is associated with a fairly high incidence of postoperative discomfort which is more of visceral origin than somatic. Studies have concluded that the instillation of local anesthetic with opioid around gall bladder bed provides more effective analgesia than either local anesthetic or opioid alone.

Material And Methods: The study included 90 American Society of Anesthesiologists I-II patients of age 16-65 years scheduled for laparoscopic cholecystectomy under general anesthesia. The patients received the study drugs at the initiation of insufflation of CO2 in the intraperitoneal space by the operating surgeon under laparoscopic camera guidance over the gallbladder bed. Patients in Group T received tramadol 2 mg/kg in 30 ml normal saline, in Group B received bupivacaine 30 ml of 0.125% and in Group BT received tramadol 2 mg/kg in 30 ml of 0.125% bupivacaine intraperitoneally. Postoperative pain assessment was done at different time intervals in the first 24 h using Visual Analog Scale of 0-10 (0 = No pain, 10 = Worst pain imagined). Time to first dose of rescue analgesic and total analgesics required in the first 24 h postoperatively were also recorded. The incidence of side effects during the postoperative period was recorded.

Results: Reduction in postoperative pain was elicited, at 4 and 8 h postoperatively when Group BT (bupivacaine-tramadol group) was compared with Group T (tramadol group) or Group B (bupivacaine group) (P < 0.01). There was a significantly lower requirement of analgesics during first 24 h postoperatively in Group BT compared to Group B or T but no significant difference in the intake of analgesics was noted between Groups B Group T. Time to first dose of rescue analgesic was also significantly prolonged in Group BT compared to Group B or T. The incidence of nausea and vomiting was comparable in all the study groups.

Conclusions: Intraperitoneal application of bupivacaine with tramadol was a more effective method for postoperative pain control after laparoscopic cholecystectomy compared to intraperitoneal bupivacaine or tramadol alone.