A comparative study of efficacy and safety of two different doses of dexmedetomidine – 0.5µg/Kg and 1µg/Kg as an adjuvant to 0.25% ropivacaine in ultrasound guided adductor canal block for postoperative analgesia in knee surgeries under spinal anaesthesia

Severe postoperative pain is a common complain post knee surgeries, affecting rehabilitation and early mobilization efforts. Regional anaesthesia forms an important part of the solution. regional anaesthesia specific to lower limb surgeries includes femoral nerve block, sciatic nerve block, obturator nerve block, lumbar plexus block and the adductor canal block. Adductor canal block is superior to femoral nerve block (considered the gold standard) in having an added advantage of motor sparing effect, which eliminates quadriceps weakness and thus helps in early mobilization post operatively.

In this study, we aim to primarily assess the efficacy of two different doses of dexmedetomidine 0.5mcg/kg and 1mcg/kg as an adjuvant to 0.25% ropivacaine in ultrasound guided adductor canal block in knee surgeries. And compare the number of rescue analgesics needed. Our secondary objective is to compare the motor blockade, sedation scores and hemodynamic stability between the two groups.