An evaluation of the analgesic efficacy of intravenous regional anesthesia with lidocaine and ketorolac using a forearm versus upper arm tourniquet

Abstract

Intravenous regional anesthesia (IVRA) using a forearm tourniquet may be a potentially safer technique compared with using an upper arm tourniquet. Ketorolac is a useful adjuvant to lidocaine for IVRA. In this study, we assessed the analgesic efficacy of administering IVRA lidocaine and ketorolac with either a forearm or upper arm tourniquet for outpatient hand surgery. Upper arm IVRA was established using 40 mL of a solution containing 200 mg of lidocaine and ketorolac 20 mg (0.5 mg/mL). Forearm IVRA was established using 20 mL of a solution containing 100 mg of lidocaine and ketorolac 10 mg (0.5 mg/mL). Onset and duration of sensory block as well as postoperative pain and analgesic use were recorded. The patients who received forearm IVRA had a significantly longer period during which they required no analgesics (701 +/- 133 min) compared with 624 +/- 80 min for the upper arm IVRA ketorolac patients (P = 0.032). Onset of sensory block was similar between the two groups; however, recovery of sensation was significantly longer in the Forearm IVRA (22 +/- 5 min) group compared with the Upper Arm IVRA (13 +/- 3 min) group (P < 0.05). There were no differences in postoperative analgesic use or pain scores between the two groups. We conclude that forearm IVRA with lidocaine and ketorolac provides safe and effective perioperative analgesia for patients undergoing ambulatory hand surgery. This technique results in a longer duration of sensory block and prolonged postoperative analgesia compared with upper arm IVRA while using one-half the doses of both lidocaine and ketorolac.

Implications: Forearm tourniquet intravenous regional anesthesia (IVRA) with 50% less lidocaine and ketorolac provides for both a longer duration of sensory block and prolonged postoperative analgesia compared with upper arm IVRA.