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O U T P A T I E N T S U R G E R Y M A G A Z I N E O N L I N E | S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 5
Mastering Adductor Canal Blocks
Done correctly, they can help control pain for up to 4 days.
A
s
more
and
more total knee
replacements
and anterior
cruciate liga-
ment recon-
structions shift
to the outpa-
tient setting, a
novel regional
anesthesia technique called an adductor canal block has emerged to
help manage pain for days. The block can reduce the need for opioids,
and facilitate early post-operative ambulation and rehabilitation. And
when augmented with a continuous catheter and infusion pump, you
can extend its effective duration for several days, providing high-quali-
ty pain control during the peak period of post-surgical inflammation.
In our practice, we leave adductor canal catheters in for up to 4 full
days.
'Best analgesic protocol for knee arthroplasty'
Similar to traditional femoral nerve blocks, adductor canal blocks
provide rapid-onset analgesia. But unlike femoral blocks, they spare
the quadriceps so the leg can maintain motor strength. They carry
the same very rare risks as other nerve blocks, such as nerve injury
and local anesthesia toxicity, but a nerve injury that occurs with an
adductor canal block is likely to be a sensory neuropathy, as opposed
A N E S T H E S I A A L E R T
Brandon Winchester, MD
z FINAL STEPS In an adductor canal block, the catheter is coiled around the insertion
site and the dressing is carefully placed to avoid interfering with the sterile field.
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