Thoracic Paravertebral Block versus Epidural Anesthesia Combined with Moderate Sedation for Percutaneous Nephrolithotomy

OBJECTIVE To investigate the feasibility of thoracic paravertebral block (TPVB) for percutaneous nephrolithotomy (PCNL) in comparison with epidural anesthesia (EA) combined with moderate sedation. SUBJECTS AND METHODS One hundred American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) I-II adult patients scheduled for first-stage unilateral PCNL were randomly assigned to receive either TPVB or EA. All patients were given standard sedation and analgesia with propofol and sufentanil. Patient characteristics, surgical outcomes, anesthetic outcomes, and time to first use of a patient-controlled intravenous analgesic (PCIA) device and postoperative consumption of sufentanil in the first 24 h were recorded. Intergroup differences of the parameters were analyzed using an independent t test, Mann-Whitney test, and χ2 test as appropriate. RESULTS Patients who received TPVB consumed more propofol during ureteroscopy (56.2 ± 28.4 vs. 42.9 ± 27.5 mg, p < 0.05) and more sufentanil during ureteroscopy (9.7 ± 4.8 vs. 3.9 ± 2.7 μg, p < 0.05) and during PCNL (7.0 ± 4.3 vs. 1.9 ± 1.8 μg, p < 0.05) than those who received EA. The volume fluids infused in patients who received TPVB was less than in those who received EA (854 ± 362 vs. 1,320 ± 468 ml, p < 0.05). Time to first PCIA use, postoperative 24-hour consumption of sufentanil, and other parameters were comparable between groups. CONCLUSIONS In this study, TPVB was as effective and safe as EA in providing intraoperative anesthesia and postoperative analgesia for PCNL, although more sedatives and analgesics were used during PCNL in patients who received TPVB.