Tramadol as an adjunct to bupivacaine for brachial plexus block.

Abstract

Objectives: To compare the efficacy of tramadol and 0.25% bupivacaine versus 0.25% bupivacaine alone for brachial plexus block. Study Design: Randomized controlled study. Setting: Orthopedic department of Nishtar Medical University/Hospital Multan. Period: The study duration was Jan-2018 to Aug-2018. Material and Methods: 148 patients planned for with upper limb orthopedic procedures under BPB in the department of orthopedics department Nishtar Hospital Multan were included in this analysis. To Patients were randomly divided into two equal groups by lottery method. Group A patients were given solution with 38 ml 0.25% bupivacaine with 100 mg tramadol 2 ml and group B were given solution with 38 ml 0.25% bupivacaine and 2 ml 0.9 % normal saline. Time of onset of block and its duration and need for rescue analgesics were noted. Results: Time of onset of block was 14.56+1.01 minutes in group A versus 15.96+1.64 minutes in group B (p-value <0.001). Mean analgesia duration was 355.85+42.18 minutes in group A versus 310.47+38.79 minutes in group B (p-value <0.001). There were 51 (68.9%) patients in group A who required rescue analgesia and 68 (91.9%) patients in group B required rescue analgesia (p-value 0.004). Conclusion: We concluded that the addition of tramadol as adjunct to bupivacaine for BPB significantly shortens the duration of onset, prolongs the duration of analgesia and reduces the need for rescue analgesics.