In children undergoing cardiac surgery by thoracotomy, paravertebral blocks with ropivacaine reduced opioid consumption by nearly half within 24 hours after surgery compared with local anesthetic, while also reducing pain scores at 6 and 12 hours after the operation. However, the approach did not speed recovery from the procedure.

“Paravertebral blocks reduced sufentanil consumption and pain during the initial 18 hours after pediatric cardiac surgery but did not speed recovery or shorten ICU stays or the duration of hospitalization,” the researchers reported.

This study was led by Jingfei Guo and Yuan Jia, from Fuwai Hospital in Beijing, China. It was published online on May 14, 2025, in Regional Anesthesia & Pain Medicine.

Sufentanil was administered by nurses, which may not have been titrated precisely as per the needs of the patient. The researchers did not differentiate between pain evoked by movement, which is usually worse, from pain at rest.

This study received support from National High-Level Hospital Clinical Research Funding from Fuwai Hospital. The authors declared having no competing interests.

This article was created using several editorial tools, including AI, as part of the process. Human editors reviewed this content before publication.