Efficacy of peripheral nerve blocks for pain management in patients with rib fractures: A systematic review and meta-analysis

OBJECTIVE: The aim of the study was to assess the efficacy of different peripheral nerve blocks, compared to convention-al methods (analgesics and epidural block), for pain relief in rib fracture patients.MATERIALS AND METHODS: PubMed, Embase, Scopus and Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL) databases were systematically searched. The review included studies that were either randomized controlled trials (RCTs) or observational in design with propensity matching. The primary outcome of interest was patient's reported pain scores, both at rest and on coughing/movement. The secondary outcomes were length of hospital stay, length of stay at intensive care unit (ICU), need for rescue analgesic, arterial blood gas values and parameters of lung function test. STATA was used for statistical analysis.RESULTS: The meta-analysis was conducted with 12 studies. Compared to conventional methods, peripheral nerve block was associated with better pain control at rest 12 hours (SMD-4.89, 95% CI:-5.91,-3.86) and 24 hours (SMD-2.58, 95% CI:-4.40,-0.76) after institution of block. At 24 hours after block, the pooled findings indicate better pain control on movement/ coughing for the peripheral nerve block group (SMD-0.78, 95% CI:-1.48,-0.09). There were no significant differences in the patient's reported pain scores at rest and on movement/coughing at 24 hours post-block. There were no differences in the overall risk of any complications (RR 0.48, 95% CI: 0.20, 1.18), pulmonary complication (RR 0.71, 95% CI: 0.35, 1.41) and in-hospital mortality (RR 0.62, 95% CI: 0.20, 1.90) between the two groups. Peripheral nerve block was also associated with a relatively lower need for res-cue analgesic (SMD-0.31, 95% CI:-0.54,-0.07). There were no differences in the length of ICU and hospital stay, risk of complications, arterial blood gas values or functional lung parameters, i.e., PaO2 and forced vital capacity between the two management strategies.CONCLUSIONS: Peripheral nerve blocks may be better than conventional pain management strategies for immediate pain control (within 24 hours of initiation of block) in patients with fractured ribs. This method also reduces the need for rescue analgesic. The skills and experience of the health personnel, facilities for care avail-able and the cost involved should guide the decision on which management strategy to utilize.