Erector Spinae Plane Block vs Quadro-Iliac Plane Block After Lumbar Instrumentation Surgery

Official title

Comparison of Ultrasound-Guided Erector Spinae Plane Block and Quadro-Iliac Plane Block for Postoperative Analgesia Management Following Lumbar Instrumentation Surgery

Overview

Lumbar instrumentation surgery is associated with significant postoperative pain. This study compares the postoperative analgesic effectiveness of ultrasound-guided Erector Spinae Plane Block and Quadro-Iliac Plane Block in patients undergoing lumbar instrumentation surgery.

Detailed description

Lumbar instrumentation surgery is frequently associated with moderate to severe postoperative pain, which may negatively affect patient comfort, delay mobilization, and increase opioid consumption. Effective postoperative analgesia is therefore essential for improving recovery and reducing opioid-related adverse effects. Regional anesthesia techniques have become an important component of multimodal analgesia strategies in lumbar spine surgery.

The Erector Spinae Plane Block (ESPB) is a well-established ultrasound-guided regional anesthesia technique that has been shown to provide postoperative analgesia in various spinal procedures. The Quadro-Iliac Plane Block (QIPB) is a newly developed ultrasound-guided block targeting the fascial plane between the erector spinae muscle and the quadratus lumborum muscle at the level of the iliac crest, with the potential to provide effective analgesia for lumbar spine surgeries. However, comparative clinical data regarding the analgesic effectiveness of these two techniques in lumbar instrumentation surgery are limited.

This study is designed to compare the postoperative analgesic effectiveness of ultrasound-guided ESPB and QIPB in patients undergoing elective lumbar instrumentation surgery under general anesthesia. Both blocks will be performed using ultrasound guidance as part of a standardized multimodal analgesia protocol.

The findings of this study aim to clarify the relative effectiveness of ESPB and QIPB for postoperative pain control following lumbar instrumentation surgery and to contribute to evidence-based selection of regional analgesia techniques in lumbar spine procedures.

Interventions

• Procedure Erector Spinae Plane Block
  An ultrasound-guided Erector Spinae Plane Block will be performed at the end of surgery, before extubation, with the patient in the prone position under standard sterilization conditions. The ultrasound probe will be placed in the parasagittal plane at the level corresponding to the surgical site to visualize the transverse process and erector spinae muscle. Following confirmation of correct needle placement with 2 mL of normal saline, 20 mL of 0.25% bupivacaine will be injected into the fascial
• Procedure Quadro-Iliac Plane Block
  An ultrasound-guided Quadro-Iliac Plane Block will be performed at the end of surgery, before extubation, with the patient in the prone position under standard sterilization conditions. A convex ultrasound probe will be placed at the level where the quadratus lumborum muscle attaches to the iliac crest to visualize the erector spinae muscle and the underlying quadratus lumborum muscle. The block location will be confirmed with the injection of 2 mL of isotonic solution, followed by the injection

Primary outcome measures

• Postoperative 48-Hour PCA Opioid Consumption [Time frame: Postoperative 0-8, 8-16, 16-24, 24-48 intervals]

Secondary outcome measures (6)

• QoR-15 Recovery Score [Time frame: Postoperative 24th and 48th hours]
• Dynamic and static Numeric Rating Scale scores [Time frame: 0, 2, 4, 8, 16, 24, and 48 hours postoperatively]]
• Total rescue analgesic dose [Time frame: Postoperative 24th and 48th hours]
• Time of first request for rescue analgesia [Time frame: Postoperative 48 hours]
• Length of Hospital Stay [Time frame: The time from the end of the surgery to discharge from the hospital(day)]
• Block and Opioid-Related Adverse Effects and Complications [Time frame: Postoperative 48 hours]

Eligibility criteria

Inclusion criteria

• Age between 18 and 65 years
• Classified as American Society of Anesthesiologists physical status I-III
• Scheduled for elective lumbar instrumentation surgery under general anesthesia
• Provision of written informed consent

Exclusion criteria

• Use of anticoagulant medications or presence of bleeding diathesis
• Known allergy or hypersensitivity to local anesthetics or opioid drugs
• Infection at the planned block site
• Alcohol or drug dependence
• Cognitive impairment preventing reliable pain assessment
• Pregnancy or lactation
• History of previous lumbar spine surgery
• Diabetes mellitus
• Renal or hepatic insufficiency

Criteria are shown verbatim from the registry (in English). Final eligibility is always assessed by the study center.

Healthy volunteers: No

Study design

Allocation

Randomized

Model

Parallel assignment

Masking

Double blind

Primary purpose

Treatment

Study locations

Turkey (Türkiye) · 1 center

• Bursa City Hospital — Bursa

Publications

• Tulgar S, Ciftci B, Ahiskalioglu A, Bilal B, Sakul BU, Girit M, Akin T, Narayanan M, Alici HA. Ultrasound guided quadro-iliac plane block: another novel fascial plane block. Pain Med. 2024 May 3;25(6):370-373. doi: 10.1093/pm/pnae018. PMID 38459608
• Turan EI, Sahin AS. Quadro-iliac plane block (QIPB) in lumbar stabilisation surgeries: A case series. Indian J Anaesth. 2025 Feb;69(2):244-245. doi: 10.4103/ija.ija_1077_24. Epub 2025 Jan 29. No abstract available. PMID 40160919
• Ciftci B, Cetinkal A, Alver S, Ahiskalioglu A. Quadro-iliac plane block for lumbar multi-level instrumentation surgery: far away from the surgical area. Minerva Anestesiol. 2025 Apr;91(4):358-359. doi: 10.23736/S0375-9393.24.18680-4. Epub 2024 Dec 10. No abstract available. PMID 39656149

Identifiers

NCT: NCT07354581 · BursaCity Hos 2

Primary sources (government registries)

• ClinicalTrials.gov (US NIH)

View this study on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗