Efficacy of rhomboid intercostal block for postoperative analgesia in patients undergoing breast surgery: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

M K Sandhya, Teena Desai, Suvajit Podder, Sudham R Shetty, M Siva

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Article in Indian journal of anaesthesia, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

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5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

5 authors.

M K SandhyaProfessor, Department of Anaesthesiology, Dayananda Sagar University, Chandramma Dayananda Sagar Institute of Medical Education and Research, Harohalli, Bangalore South, Karnataka, India.ORCID https://orcid.org/0009-0005-9446-0159

Teena DesaiAssistant Professor, Department of Anaesthesiology, Belagavi Institute of Medical Sciences, Belagavi, Karnataka, India.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1114-7828

Suvajit PodderAssistant Professor, Department of Anaesthesiology, Kasturba Medical College, Manipal, Manipal Academy of Higher Education, Manipal, Karnataka, India.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6852-5781

Sudham R ShettyAssistant Professor, Department of Anaesthesiology, Kanachur Institute of Medical Sciences, Mangalore, Karnataka, India.ORCID https://orcid.org/0009-0003-7970-7796

M SivaAssistant Professor, Department of Community Medicine, Dayananda Sagar University, Chandramma Dayananda Sagar Institute of Medical Education and Research, Harohalli, Bangalore South, Karnataka, India.ORCID https://orcid.org/0009-0005-8242-883X

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Background and Aims: The rhomboid intercostal plane block (RIB) is a regional anaesthesia technique that has shown promising results in breast and thoracic surgeries. This systematic review and meta-analysis evaluated the efficacy and safety of RIB in breast surgery. Methods: The study was conducted as per PRISMA guidelines and registered in PROSPERO (CRD420251089477). Randomised controlled studies in which RIB was compared with other regional blocks or a control group for postoperative analgesia in breast surgeries were included in this study. Databases searched included PubMed, EMBASE, the Cochrane Library, Web of Science, Directory of Open Access Journals, and Google Scholar. The primary outcome was 24 h opioid consumption; secondary outcomes were duration of analgesia, pain scores, and complications. Data extraction and Risk of Bias assessment were performed independently by two reviewers. Continuous data were pooled as mean difference (MD) and dichotomous data as risk ratio with 95% confidence intervals (CIs). Analyses were conducted using Python (v3.11.13) and RevMan (v5.4). Results: Ten randomised controlled trials ( Conclusion: RIB, as part of multimodal analgesia, significantly reduces opioid consumption compared with no block. RIB is a safe and effective alternative to established regional anaesthesia techniques for postoperative analgesia in breast surgeries.

Indexed as

Breast surgerypostoperative analgesiarhomboid intercostal plane blocksystematic reviewsthoracic fascial plane blocks

Identifiers

PMID41696381

DOI10.4103/ija.ija_1163_25

PMCPMC12900228

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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.