Trial reportAnesthesiology2026
Ultrasound-guided External Oblique Intercostal Plane Block with Ropivacaine for Analgesia after Open Hepatectomy: A Randomized Controlled Study.
Trial report in Anesthesiology, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.
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
2 citing papers in PubMed.
- Which fascial plane block is right for my patient? A practical decision-making algorithm for abdominal surgery.Journal of anesthesia, analgesia and critical care · 2026Review
- Peripheral Nerve Blocks Following Open Hepatectomy: A Systematic Review and Network Meta-Analysis.Journal of pain research · 2026Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
9 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundThe external oblique intercostal (EOI) plane block has been proposed as an innovative regional anesthetic technique for upper abdominal surgery by recent case reports. This randomized controlled study evaluated whether ultrasound-guided EOI plane block improves analgesia compared with patient-controlled intravenous analgesia (PCIA) alone in patients undergoing open hepatectomy.
methodsBetween July 24, 2023, and May 29, 2024, a total of 70 adult patients scheduled for elective open hepatectomy at Zhongshan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, China, were randomly assigned (1:1) to receive an EOI plane block with ropivacaine 0.375% (30 ml) or the equivalent 0.9% normal saline, in addition to PCIA. The primary outcome was opioid consumption in intravenous morphine equivalents within 24 h postoperatively. Secondary outcomes included opioid consumption at 1, 8, 12, 36, and 48 h postoperatively; visual analog scale pain scores at rest and during coughing at 12, 24, and 48 h postoperatively; intraoperative opioid use; time to first postoperative rescue analgesia; pruritus; nausea or vomiting; EOI-related complications; Quality of Recovery-15 score at 24 and 48 h; length of hospital stay, and chronic pain at 3 months.
resultsThe EOI group showed significantly lower opioid consumption in intravenous morphine equivalents at 24 h postoperatively (mean difference, -2.91; P = 0.019), with greater reduction at 36 h (-4.66 mg), and 48 h (-6.06 mg; both P < 0.001) postoperatively. The EOI group also required less intraoperative fentanyl, reported lower resting visual analog scale pain scores, and had a longer time to first postoperative rescue analgesia. No significant between-group differences were observed in coughing pain scores, Quality of Recovery-15 score, length of stay, or chronic pain. No complications related to EOI were detected.
conclusionsPreoperative EOI plane block reduced intraoperative and postoperative opioid consumption and improve pain control after open hepatectomy compared to PCIA alone without block-related complications.
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.