Sensory Anesthesia Achieved Through Different Paravertebral Block Approaches for Post-Op Pain Management After VATS Lung Resection

Launched by CENTRE HOSPITALIER DE L'UNIVERSITÉ DE MONTRÉAL (CHUM) · Jul 2, 2025

Keywords

ClinConnect Summary

This clinical trial is studying two different ways to provide pain relief after a type of lung surgery called video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS), which is a minimally invasive procedure used to treat lung conditions like cancer. The focus is on a pain relief method called the paravertebral block, where numbing medicine is injected near the spine to block pain signals. Researchers want to see which of the two injection methods works better to numb the right areas and reduce pain after surgery, helping to improve comfort during recovery.

Adults aged 18 and older who are having this lung surgery may be eligible to join, as long as they meet certain health criteria and don’t have conditions that make this pain block unsafe (like blood clotting problems or allergies to the numbing medicine). Participants can expect to receive one of the two types of paravertebral blocks during their surgery, and doctors will carefully check how well each method numbs the chest area. This study is not yet recruiting, but if you or a family member are preparing for VATS lung surgery, this trial could offer new insights into better pain management options after the procedure.

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Eligibility criteria

• Inclusion Criteria:
• • Patients aged 18 years and older
• • American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) score 1-3
• Exclusion Criteria:
• • Contraindication to the paravertebral block (coagulopathy, use of anticoagulants or antiplatelet agents other than aspirin that have not been stopped according to hospital guidelines, thoracoscopic visualization of the paravertebral space expected to be difficult or impossible, anterior spinal surgery with potential discontinuity of the paravertebral space)
• • Epidural analgesia preferred (high risk of thoracotomy, marginal lung function)
• • Surgical criteria: conversion to thoracotomy necessary and thoracic epidural or other form of regional analgesia implemented post-operatively
• • Known allergy to local anesthetics
• • Language barrier, psychiatric, physical or mental condition making pain assessment impossible despite prior education
• • Pregnancy
• • Patient refusal to participate