Caudal Epidural Vs. TAP Block for Postoperative Analgesia in Pediatric Infraumbilical Surgery: a RCT
Status:
COMPLETED
Trial end date:
2023-12-15
Target enrollment:
Participant gender:
Summary
This randomized controlled trial investigates the postoperative analgesic efficacy of caudal epidural block versus ultrasound-guided transversus abdominis plane (TAP) block in pediatric patients undergoing infraumbilical surgery.
A total of 60 pediatric patients (aged 1 to 7 years, ASA I-II) were randomly assigned to one of two groups:
* Group C (Caudal Block): Received 1 mL/kg of 0.25% bupivacaine in the caudal epidural space.
* Group T (TAP Block): Received 0.3 mL/kg of 0.25% bupivacaine injected into the transversus abdominis plane under ultrasound guidance.
Primary Outcome:
* Postoperative FLACC pain scores at 2, 6, 12, and 24 hours.
Secondary Outcomes:
* Total analgesic consumption (including rescue analgesia).
* Intraoperative hemodynamic parameters (heart rate, blood pressure, SpO).
* Incidence of nausea and vomiting (PONV).
* Parental satisfaction scores.
The study aims to determine which regional anesthesia technique provides superior pain relief and reduces systemic analgesic requirements in pediatric patients.