Efficacy of bilateral PECS II block in postoperative analgesia for ultrafast track pediatric cardiac anesthesia

Background Effective analgesia after cardiac surgery contributes to fast recovery, and discharge from the critical care unit. Aim: This study was conducted to evaluate PECS II block for controlling post-sternotomy pain in pediatric population in ultrafast track cardiac surgery.Methods In this double-blind, randomized control trial, 40 children, 1–5 years old, underwent cardiac surgery via median sternotomy, Group (A) control: Analgesics were administered intravenously. Group (B): received 0.25% bupivacaine at 0.5 ml/kg divided equally to both sides for PECS block.Results PECS group had lower median Modified Objective Pain Score (MOPS) immediately, two, four, and 6 h postoperatively. PECS group had lower median fentanyl utilization by 35% than the control group with median utilization of 2.72 (95% CI 2.490–2.960) mic/kg/in the first 24 hours in contrast to 4.17 (95% CI 3.834–4.516) mic/kg/in the first 24 hours in the control group (P < 0.001). First rescue analgesia was later in PECS group compared to the control group with median time (7 hours) and (2 hours), respectively. Furthermore, Pediatric Anesthesia Emergence Agitation (PAED) score was lower in the intervention group with median 9.5 and 12 in the control group (P < 0.001). PECS group had shorter ICU stay than the control group (P < 0.05), with mean ICU stay 52 hours (95% CI 43.522–62.378) compared to 80.40 hours (95% CI 64.310–96.490).Conclusion PECS block is an efficient technique that can be implemented as an integral part of fast-track cardiac surgery.