Evaluation of the Effectiveness of Ultrasound-Guided Serratus Posterior Superior Intercostal Plane Block for Postoperative Analgesia Management in Patients Undergoing Arthroscopic Shoulder Surgery

Postoperative pain is a significant problem in patients undergoing arthroscopic shoulder surgery. This situation disrupts the patient's comfort, prevents early rehabilitation, and affects the functional outcome after surgery. Various methods are used for postoperative pain control. Intravenous opioid agents are one of the most commonly used analgesic techniques. However, opioids can cause undesirable side effects such as respiratory depression, sedation, constipation, allergic reactions, nausea, and vomiting. Therefore, alternative techniques are needed to reduce opioid use. Regional techniques can be used for postoperative pain treatment following arthroscopic shoulder surgery. Ultrasound (US)-guided serratus posterior superior block (SPSIPB) is a novel interfascial plane block described by Tulgar et al in 2023. It is based on the principle of injection into the serratus posterior superior muscle at the level of the 2nd or 3rd rib. This block provides analgesia in cases such as interscapular pain, chronic myofascial pain syndromes, scapulocostal syndrome, and shoulder pain. The SPS muscle is located at the C7-T2 level. It attaches to the lateral edges of the second and fifth ribs. It is innervated by the lower cervical and upper intercostal nerves. Analgesia is provided by blocking these nerves with the SPS block. Tulgar et al. reported in their cadaver study that the spread of the serratus posterior superior interfascial plane block; staining in the superficial fascia of the trapezius muscle was observed only on the left side at the 7-10th intercostal levels, but not on the right. There was significant staining deep in the trapezius muscle on both sides. Both the surface and the skin of the rhomboid major were clearly stained, while only the skin of the rhomboid minor was stained; SPSP block will provide successful analgesia in procedures involving the thoracic region such as breast surgery, thoracic surgery, and shoulder surgery.

In this study, the investigators aim to evaluate the analgesic efficacy of SPSIPB by comparing the control group in patients who underwent arthroscopic shoulder surgery.