Fast Track Knee Arthroplasty: Comparison of Two Different Multimodal Analgesia Methods

This is the authors' abstract. We don't add key points for this paper.

ObjectiveThe aim of this study was to evaluate the effectsof a multimodal protocol in pre-emptive analgesiafollowing Total Knee Arthroplasty (TKA), usingepidural anesthesia with femoral nerve blockage(FNB) or local infiltration analgesia (LIA) methods infast-track TKA.Material and MethodsThis study was planned as a single-centre,randomized, single-blind, controlled study. The studyincluded 72 voluntary patients, aged 40-80 years,of both genders, who underwent TKA for primary orsecondary osteoarthritis. The patients were dividedinto two groups using a computer randomizationprogram. Group I: FNB application and Group II:LIA methods. Groups were compared in terms offunctional scores.ResultsNo statistically significant difference was determinedbetween the groups in respect of age, gender, height,weight, BMI, ASA, operated side, prosthesis type,and operating time (p>0.05). A statistically significantdifference was determined in the function score valuesbetween the measurement times in both groups(p<0.05). Multiple comparison tests (post-hoc) wereapplied to determine at which time or times there wasa difference. In both groups, the function score valueswere different at all the measurement times, with thepreoperative measurement found to be the lowestand the postoperative 3-month values the highest.ConclusionsOur study show that used multimodal analgesia withfemoral nerve block or local infiltration analgesia canbe applied as effective analgesia methods in fasttrackTKA and can be considered as alternatives foreach other.