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EP190 Patient satisfaction and rebound pain after regional anaesthesia: a survey in ambulatory hand and wrist surgeries

rapm · 2025-09-10 · canonical JSON source

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Background and Aims Effective pain management is essential for day-case hand and wrist surgeries. Regional anaesthesia (RA) provides superior postoperative analgesia but rebound pain – a significant postoperative pain after sensory blockade resolution – remains common. This prospective survey evaluates patient satisfaction and the incidence of rebound pain after awake surgery under RA.Methods Fifty patients who underwent ambulatory hand and wrist surgeries under peripheral nerve blocks without general anaesthesia were identified from the electronic health records. Patients were contacted by telephone to complete a survey assessing post-operative pain, analgesics consumption and satisfaction.Results All 50 patients had axillary brachial plexus blocks. Overall satisfaction was high ( figure 1), although some patients expressed anxiety about the needling for the nerve block and being awake during surgery. Eighteen patients (36%) experienced rebound pain (classified as pain score greater than 7 within 24 hours of functioning block). While 49 patients (98%) were given information about post-operative pain management, only 31 (62%) recalled instructions to take pain relief regularly and before the nerve block wore off. Subgroup analysis was also conducted. (Table 1)Abstract EP190 Figure 1Patient satisfaction survey. *One patient answered ‘definitely not’ due to experiencing tourniquet pain from an unexpectedly prolonged surgeryAbstract EP190 Table 1Comparison between dupuytren’s fasciectomy and bone-related surgeriesConclusions Awake ambulatory hand and wrist surgeries under RA had high patient satisfaction rates. However, over a third of patients were unaware of analgesic measures to prevent rebound pain. This highlights the need for patient education on pre-emptive analgesia to enhance pain control, particularly for bone-related procedures. Non-pharmacological intraoperative anxiety-reduction techniques could further enhance patient experience during awake surgery. Inconsistent practices highlight the need for structured standard operating procedures for different types of hand surgeries.