Evaluation of Post-Operative Analgesic Efficacy of Bilateral External Oblique Intercostal Plane Block Versus Wound Site Infiltration Control Group in Patients Underwent Laparoscopic Cholecystectomy Surgery

Despite the advancements in surgical and anesthesia techniques, pain following surgical interventions remains a significant issue concerning patient health and comfort today. The physiological response resulting from surgical trauma and stress can lead to various unwanted conditions in the pulmonary, cardiovascular, gastrointestinal, metabolic, and neuroendocrine systems. These complications negatively impact wound healing, length of hospital stay, and costs. The primary goal in managing pain after surgery is to facilitate the healing process, avoid potential side effects associated with analgesic treatments, and enhance patient comfort.

Cholecystectomy, which plays a significant role among abdominal surgical interventions, can currently be performed using two distinct techniques: open and laparoscopic.

Laparoscopic cholecystectomy is considered the gold standard treatment for symptomatic cholelithiasis due to its ability to cause less trauma compared to open surgery, facilitate faster recovery in patients, result in less postoperative pain, and allow patients to return to their normal lives more quickly.

There are three components of postoperative pain observed after laparoscopic cholecystectomy. These include somatic pain associated with the laparoscopic trocar entry incisions in the anterior abdominal wall, visceral pain due to pneumoperitoneum and surgical dissection of the gallbladder, and referred shoulder pain resulting from the stimulation of the phrenic nerve by residual carbon dioxide gas.

Effective management of postoperative pain is crucial for reducing respiratory complications, shortening hospital stay, and increasing patient satisfaction. In this context, both nonsteroidal intravenous analgesics and opioids are used. However, opioids have undesirable side effects, including respiratory depression, nausea and vomiting, and reduced gastrointestinal motility. Therefore, multimodal analgesia methods that combine intravenous analgesics with regional anesthesia are preferred, allowing for the reduction of drug-related side effects while providing safe and effective postoperative analgesia.