Pectoral Nerve Blocks Under Direct Vision During Endoscopic-Assisted Transaxillary Breast Augmentation: A Novel, Effective Regional Blocking Approach.

[BACKGROUND] Endoscopic-assisted transaxillary breast augmentation allows performing Pecs block under direct visualization. This study aimed to describe this new technique and demonstrat its short-term efficacy and safety with a preliminary clinical study.

[METHODS] Patients enrolled for transaxillary endoscopic-assisted prosthetic breast augmentation between February 2022 and March 2023 in two medical centers were included in the pectoral nerve block group. Postoperative VAS scores at 1, 4, 12, 24, 48, and 72 h, surgery duration, and the occurrence of nausea and vomiting were compared with a historical cohort of patients collected between February 2021 and January 2022 with the same inclusion criteria.

[RESULTS] 229 patients were included in the Pecs group and 116 patients were identified in the control group. No statistical difference was observed in patient characteristics. VAS score at postoperative 1 h and 72 h was similar between the two groups, whereas VAS score at postoperative 4 h, 12 h, 24 h and 48 h in Pecs group was significantly lower than control group. The occurrence of PONV in the Pecs group is significantly lower than in the control group. The duration of surgery is similar between the two groups. No block-related complication was observed in the Pecs group.

[CONCLUSION] A novel approach by combining pectoral nerve blocks with transaxillary endoscopic-assisted breast augmentation to perform blocks under direct vision was proposed and its short-term efficacy and safety was determined by this study.

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