title: Comparing the effects of femoral nerve block versus femoral and sciatic nerve block on pain and opiate consumption after total knee arthroplasty.
abstract: The goal of this study was to compare femoral and femoral plus sciatic nerve blocks in the postoperative pain management of patients undergoing total knee arthroplasty (TKA). A total of 97 patients participated in a convenience sample, comparative study. Patients who received femoral nerve block only (n = 30) reported statistically higher pain scores (P <.05) and showed 61% higher opiate consumption than those who received femoral and sciatic nerve blocks (n = 67) in the first 24 hours after surgery. The results suggest that the combined femoral and sciatic nerve block provides superior pain management in the early postoperative period after TKA.
authors.affiliation: St. Vincent's Hospital and Southern Cross University, Lismore, Australia.
authors.forename: Paul
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Cook
authors.forename: John
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Stevens
authors.forename: Colleen
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Gaudron
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000698:Analgesia / Q000379:methods*; D019645:Arthroplasty, Replacement, Knee; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D009407:Nerve Block; D010149:Postoperative Pain / Q000517:prevention & control*; D011184:Postoperative Period