Continuous bupivacaine infusion in iliac bone graft donor sites to minimize pain and hospitalization.
OBJECTIVE
To assess the efficacy of continuous bupivacaine infusion at the iliac crest donor site in reducing postoperative pain and inpatient hospital stay.


METHODS
Forty consecutive cleft lip/palate patients who underwent alveolar bone grafting at a single institution between 2003 and 2008 were identified, and their charts were retrospectively reviewed. Opioid analgesic use, self-reported pain indices, and length of hospital stay were analyzed. Comparisons were made between those patients who received a bupivacaine infusion pump at the iliac crest harvest site and those who did not.


RESULTS
Twenty patients underwent iliac crest bone graft harvest followed by intraoperative placement of a continuous 0.25% bupivacaine infusion pump, and 20 were managed primarily with postoperative intravenous and parenteral analgesics. There were no statistically significant differences in demographics between the two cohorts. Those patients receiving continuous bupivacaine had a decreased length of hospital stay (mean, 2.9 versus 1.4 days; p = .0077), a statistical trend toward decreased opioid use (p = .032), and a lower average subjective pain score on the day of surgery (p = .0058).


CONCLUSIONS
There is a significant decrease in the length of hospitalization when using a continuous local infusion pump to deliver bupivacaine to the iliac crest following bone graft harvest. The pump is tolerated by patients and carries little morbidity. As such, the benefit of reduced cost from a reduced hospital stay is worthwhile. Continuous bupivacaine infusion is recommended for the iliac crest donor site.
Sbitany
Hani
H
Koltz
Peter F
PF
Waldman
Jeremy
J
Girotto
John A
JA
D000540:Alveolar Ridge Augmentation / Q000379:methods*; D000779:Anesthetics, Local / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D016025:Bone Transplantation; D002045:Bupivacaine / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D002971:Cleft Lip / Q000601:surgery*; D002972:Cleft Palate / Q000601:surgery*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007085:Ilium / Q000637:transplantation*; D007260:Infusion Pumps; D007902:Length of Stay / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D008297:Male; D010147:Pain Measurement; D010149:Postoperative Pain / Q000517:prevention & control*; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D016896:Treatment Outcome
D000779:Anesthetics, Local; D002045:Bupivacaine