[Ketamine as an adjunct to bupivacaine in infra-orbital nerve block analgesia after cleft lip repair].

OBJECTIVES We conducted this study to investigate the safety and analgesic efficacy of the addition of Ketamine to Bupivacaine in bilateral extra-oral infra-orbital nerve block in children undergoing cleft lip surgeries. METHODS Sixty patients were randomly allocated into two groups (n=30), Group B received infra-orbital nerve block with 2mL of 0.25% Bupivacaine and Group BK received 0.5mg.kg-1 Ketamine for each side added to 1mL of 0.5% Bupivacaine solution diluted up to 2mL solution to 0.25% Bupivacaine concentration. Assessment parameters included; hemodynamics, recovery time, time to first oral intake, postoperative Faces Legs Activity Cry Consolability (FLACC) scores, Four-point Agitation scores, analgesic consumption and adverse effects. RESULTS Patients in Group BK showed lower postoperative FLACC scores during all recorded time points (p<0.0001). Two patients in Group BK versus 12 in Group B requested for postoperative rescue analgesia (p<0.001). There were no differences between groups in time, minutes (min), to first request for rescue analgesia. Patients in Group BK reported lower analgesic consumption (366.67±45.67 vs. 240.0±0.0mg, p<0.04). The time to first oral intake was significantly reduced in Group BK (87.67±15.41 vs. 27.33±8.68min, p<0.001). Lower postoperative Agitation scores were recorded in Group BK patients that reached a statistical significance at 45min (0.86±0.11 vs. 0.46±0.16, p<0.04) and in the first hour (h) postoperatively (1.40±0.17 vs. 0.67±0.14, p<0.003). Higher parent satisfaction scores were recorded in Group BK (p<0.04) without significant adverse effects. CONCLUSIONS The addition of Ketamine to Bupivacaine has accentuated the analgesic efficacy of infra-orbital nerve block in children undergoing cleft lip repair surgeries.