Carpal tunnel release under intravenous regional anaesthesia with ropivacaine or lidocaine

Carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) surgery is usually performed utilizing regional anaesthesia techniques such as local infiltration, brachial plexus block and intravenous regional anaesthesia (IVRA). The present investigation aimed to compare the clinical effects of IVRA with lidocaine or ropivacaine. Forty patients undergoing carpal tunnel release were divided into two groups (20 each) and 0.1% ropivacaine or 0.25% lidocaine were administred for IVRA. All patients underwent a standard surgical procedure. The patients were asked about their satisfaction regarding analgesia. After tourniquet deflation, patients were evaluated for any signs of side effects. Verbal numerical pain scores of patients were recorded periodically in the postoperative period. Onset of and recovery from sensory anaesthesia and quantification of analgesic consumption were assessed. According to our results, 0.25% lidocaine and 0.1% ropivacaine provided satisfactory anaesthetic quality with a low toxicity profile. The recovery tim...