ArticleCureus2025
Comparing Different Doses of Intravenous Dexamethasone for Prolonging Analgesia After a Single-Shot Ultrasound-Guided Supraclavicular Brachial Plexus Block: A Prospective Randomized Study.
Article in Cureus, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
0 citing papers in PubMed.
No citing paper in PubMed yet.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
4 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Background Supraclavicular brachial plexus block (SCBPB) is a widely used regional anesthesia technique for upper limb surgeries. Intravenous dexamethasone is known to prolong postoperative analgesia, but the optimal dose remains uncertain due to potential side effects like hyperglycemia associated with high doses. This study compares the efficacy of different doses of intravenous dexamethasone in enhancing the duration of analgesia following a single-shot ultrasound-guided SCBPB. Methods This prospective, randomized study included 60 American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) grade I-III patients undergoing upper limb surgery. All patients received an ultrasound-guided SCBPB, followed by general anesthesia (GA) and were randomly allocated into four groups using computer-generated randomization: group 1: 0.5% levobupivacaine (20 ml) + 8 mg IV dexamethasone; group 2: 0.5% levobupivacaine (20 ml) + 4 mg IV dexamethasone; group 3: 0.5% levobupivacaine (20 ml) + 2 mg IV dexamethasone; group 4 (control): 0.5% levobupivacaine (20 ml) + IV 0.9% normal saline. Postoperative pain scores (visual analog scale, VAS), duration of analgesia, rescue analgesic requirement, incidence of nausea/vomiting, and blood glucose levels were recorded over 24 hours. Statistical analysis was performed using analysis of variance (ANOVA) and chi-square tests. Results Patients who received IV dexamethasone showed significantly prolonged analgesia compared to the control group (p < 0.001). The duration of analgesia in the 8 mg group was 13.8 ± 1.5 hours, compared to 11.2 ± 1.3 hours (4 mg), 9.4 ± 1.2 hours (2 mg), and 6.8 ± 1.1 hours in the control group. This represents a 103% increase in analgesia duration with 8 mg dexamethasone compared to the control. The incidence of postoperative nausea and vomiting (PONV) was lower in dexamethasone groups (p = 0.02). However, 8 mg dexamethasone was associated with transient hyperglycemia (p = 0.04), with blood glucose levels peaking at 185 ± 12 mg/dL compared to 145 ± 10 mg/dL in the control group. Conclusion Intravenous dexamethasone significantly prolongs analgesia following SCBPB, with 8 mg providing the longest duration (103% increase vs. control). However, 4 mg may offer a balance between efficacy and minimal side effects, particularly in avoiding postoperative hyperglycemia.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.