Comparative Evaluation of Dexamethasone as an adjuvant to 0.25 percent Ropivacaine vs 0.25 percent Ropivacaine with Normal Saline in External Oblique Intercostal Plane Block in patients undergoing Laparoscopic Cholecystectomy

Pain following laparoscopic cholecystectomy is a common complaint that prolongs hospital stay and therefore increases morbidity. Most patients experience mild to moderate pain after laparoscopic cholecystectomy. External oblique intercostal plane block is a novel block, which has been described as an important modification of the fascial plane blocks that can consistently involve the upper lateral abdominal walls. Ropivacaine is a long acting local anaesthetic and has a documented better safety profile than other local anaesthetics. . Dexamethasone is a highly potent, long-acting glucocorticoid with analgesic, antiemetic, and anti-inflammatory properties, and when used as an adjuvant in peripheral nerve blocks, increases the duration of analgesia with minimal side effects and has an added advantage in decreasing postoperative nausea and vomiting. The proposed study aims to assess the efficacy of dexamethasone as an adjuvant to ropivacaine in comparison to plain ropivacaine on External oblique intercostal plane block in patients undergoing laparoscopic cholecystectomy as a part of multimodal analgesia. We hypothesize that the addition of dexamethasone 8 mg to ropivacaine 0.25 percent in  External oblique intercostal plane block would prolong the analgesic effect and reduce 24hr tramadol consumption when compared with plain ropivacaine 0.25 percent  in patients undergoing laparoscopic cholecystectomy.