title: Efficacy of periportal infiltration and intraperitoneal instillation of ropivacaine after laparoscopic surgery in children.
abstract: Postoperative pain is less intense after laparoscopic than after open surgery. However, minimally invasive surgery is not a a pain-free procedure. Many trials have been done in adults using intraperitoneal and/or incisional local anesthetic, but similar studies have not yet been reported in the literature in children.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  The aim of this study was to evaluate the analgesic effect of periportal infiltration and intraperitoneal instillation of ropivacaine in children undergoing laparoscopic surgery.
  
  
  METHODS
  Thirty patients who underwent laparoscopic surgery were randomly allocated to one of three groups. Group A (n = 10) received local infiltration of port sites with 10 mL of ropivacaine. Group B (n = 10) received both an infiltration of port sites with 10 mL of ropivacaine and an intraperitoneal instillation of 10 mL of ropivacaine. Group C did not receive any analgesic treatment. The local anesthetic was always administered at the end of surgery. The degree of postoperative abdominal parietal pain, abdominal visceral pain, and shoulder pain was assessed by using a Wong-Baker pain scale and a Visual Analog Scale (VAS) at 3, 6 12, and 24 hours postoperatively. The following parameters were also evaluated: rescue analgesic treatment, length of hospital stay, and time of return to normal activities.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Three hours after operation, patients had low pain scores. Six and 12 hours postoperatively, the abdominal parietal pain was significantly higher (P < 0.0005) in group C than in the other two groups, both treated with an infiltration at the trocar sites; mean intensity of abdominal visceral pain was significantly lower (P < 0.0005) in group B than in groups A and C; the overall incidence of shoulder pain was significantly lower (P < 0.0005) in group B patients than in patients of groups A and C. At 20 hours postoperatively, pain scores were significantly reduced of intensity in all groups. Rescue analgesic treatment was significantly higher in group C, if compared to groups A and B 12 hours after the operation. No statistically significant difference was found in length of hospital stay, but children who received analgesic treatment had a more rapid return to normal activities than untreated patients (P < 0.0005).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our study demonstrates that the combination of local infiltration and intraperitoneal instillation of ropivacaine is more effective for pain relief in children after laparoscopic surgery than the administration of ropivacaine only at the trocar sites.
authors.affiliation: Pediatric Surgical Unit, Department of Mother and Child Care, Università di Palermo, Palermo, Italy.
authors.forename: Maria Rita
authors.initials: MR
authors.lastname: Di Pace
authors.forename: Marcello
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Cimador
authors.forename: Pieralba
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Catalano
authors.forename: Anna
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Caruso
authors.forename: Maria
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Sergio
authors.forename: Alessandra
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Casuccio
authors.forename: Enrico
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: De Grazia
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000577:Amides / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D000779:Anesthetics, Local / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D015992:Body Mass Index; D002648:Child; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007263:Infusions, Parenteral; D007322:Instillation, Drug; D010535:Laparoscopy / Q000009:adverse effects*; D008297:Male; D010147:Pain Measurement; D010149:Postoperative Pain / Q000209:etiology* / Q000517:prevention & control*; D000077212:Ropivacaine; D016896:Treatment Outcome
chemical_list: D000577:Amides; D000779:Anesthetics, Local; D000077212:Ropivacaine