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Introduction Quadratus lumborum (QL) block has previously been shown to provide improved analgesia in patients undergoing primary total hip arthroplasty (THA) under spinal anesthesia when compared to spinal anesthesia alone. Additionally, recent studies have shown the addition of intrathecal morphine (ITM) to provide superior postoperative analgesia in patients undergoing various surgical interventions including total knee arthroplasty under spinal anesthesia with peripheral nerve blockade. At this time, however, there has not been a study evaluating the effects of intrathecal morphine in patients undergoing THA under spinal anesthesia with QL block. This study aims to assess if the addition of intrathecal morphine can provide adequate or even superior postoperative analgesia in patients undergoing primary THA. Methods This retrospective study included 26 patients in the spinal/QL block/intrathecal morphine (SA+QLB+ITM) group, 31 patients in the spinal/QL block group (SA+QLB), and 28 patients in the spinal only (SA or control) group. Twenty-six patients undergoing primary THA under a combination of spinal anesthesia and peripheral nerve blockade (quadratus lumborum block) were given a dose of 100 mcg of intrathecal morphine. Various parameters were evaluated including Post-Anesthesia Care Unit (PACU) and 24-hour visual analog scale (VAS) scores, time to first opioid use, 24- and 48-hour total opioid use as oral morphine equivalents (OME), 24-hour ambulation distance, and time from block placement to hospital discharge. The results were analyzed and compared to patients undergoing primary THA under spinal anesthesia with QL block (no intrathecal morphine) and compared to a control group of patients undergoing primary THA under spinal anesthesia only. Results The study analysis included 26 patients in the SA+QLB+ITM group, 31 patients in the SA+QLB group, and 28 patients in the SA (control) group. When compared with the control group, the SA+QLB+ITM had lower 24-hour total opioid usage (mean difference 20.80 OME, CI 6.454 to 35.15, p-value 0.0025), longer time to 1st opioid use (mean difference -20.51 hours later, p-value .0052), lower 24-hr VAS (difference 2.421, p-value 0.0012, CI 0.8559 to 3.987), and faster time to discharge (16.00 hr earlier, p-value 0.0459). When compared to the SA+QLB group, the SA+QLB+ITM group only showed a statistically significant difference in faster time to discharge (19.46 hr earlier, p-value 0.0068). However, while there was no statistically significant difference in time to 1st opioid use between the control and SA+QLB group, the difference did become significant when comparing the control to the SA+QLB+ITM group (mean difference -20.51 hours later (p-value .0052). There was no significant difference in either of the three groups in ambulation distance at 24 hours, PACU VAS, or 48-hour total opioid use. Conclusion Our study concludes that the addition of 100 mcg ITM for total hip arthroplasty under spinal anesthesia improved postoperative analgesia compared to the control group. Also, the ITM group did better with respect to delay in first opioid use and decreased hospital stay compared to the control and block-only groups. Our study warrants no more concerns of PONV, pruritus, or respiratory depression with this dose of ITM and requires standard postoperative care.
Kukreja et al. (Sun,) studied this question.