A quadruple peripheral nerve block outside the OR for anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction reduces the OR occupancy time.

Purpose: The use of regional anesthesia (RA) for anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction reduces morphine consumption, the time spent in the post-anesthesia care unit (PACU) and the hospital readmission rate. However, RA failures due to delays in the induction of anesthesia and its unpredictable success rate (Cuvillon et al. Ann Fr Anesth 29:710-715, 2010; Jankowski et al. Anesth Analg 10.1213/01.ANE.0000081798.89853.E7) can lead to disorganization of the operating room (OR) schedule. The hypothesis is that performing RA outside the OR will significantly reduce the OR occupancy time relative to using general anesthesia (GA). The primary objective was to compare the OR occupancy time between RA and GA when performing ACL reconstruction.

Methods: This was a retrospective, single-center study of data collected prospectively from consecutive patients operated by a single surgeon between January 2019 and December 2020. The patients undergoing ACL reconstruction were divided into two groups based on the type of anesthesia they received (GA, RA). RA consisted of a quadruple peripheral nerve block (femoral, sciatic, obturator and lateral femoral cutaneous nerves). The durations of the perioperative stages of the patient's journey in the OR suite were compared between these two groups.

Results: The analysis involved 469 ACL reconstructions: 356 GA and 113 RA. The two groups were comparable in age, gender and ASA score (American Society of Anesthesiologists). The OR occupancy time for ACL reconstruction with RA was reduced by a mean of 13 min (70 ± 12 SD vs. 83 ± 14 SD; P < 0.0001) and the PACU time by 41 min relative to GA (P < 0.0001). The entry-incision time was reduced by an average of 8 min and the end-exit time by 3 min (P < 0.0001). The care time in the PACU was reduced from 84 ± 35 to 46 ± 26 min (P < 0.0001). However, performing anesthesia outside the OR (i.e., in a RA block room) did not reduce the turnover time (n.s).

Conclusion: Performing RA outside the OR reduced the OR occupancy time by nearly 20% relative to using GA for ACL reconstructions.

Level Of Evidence: Level IV.