Prospective Randomized Comparative Study of the Effectiveness of Suprascapular Nerve Block in Arthroscopic Shoulder Surgery

Most arthroscopic surgeries of the shoulder are currently performed as an outpatient. The postoperative analgesia should be optimal. General anesthesia allows for any arthroscopic surgery but does not provide a satisfactory postoperative analgesia . The locoregional anesthesia is recommended and includes several techniques: the interscalene nerve block, the suprascapular nerve block, intra-articular injection of local anesthetic and subacromial infiltration. The interscalene nerve block is currently the gold standard for anesthesia and postoperative analgesia for arthroscopic shoulder surgery with a success rate above 80% . However it must be carried out by teams experienced in the locoregional anesthesia because it is operator -dependent. The suprascapular nerve block is a simple technique that can be performed by the surgeon after surgery , effective in arthroscopic shoulder surgery , less invasive than the interscalene nerve block and exposing the patient to fewer complications. However, his interest was not assessed in the repair of tendons of the rotator cuff. The main hypothesis of this study is that the suprascapular nerve block is as effective as the interscalene nerve block in the prevention of early postoperative pain after arthroscopic repair of the infra and / or the supraspinatus rotator cuff tendons, without increasing the analgesic consumption while reducing the risk of complications related to regional anesthesia.