IV pain medicine, thoracic epidural, and erector spinae plane block for long-term pain after open-heart surgery

Is this trial a fit for you?

A plain-English reading of the study's rules. Only the study team can confirm whether you qualify.

What this trial studies

This prospective observational study compares three routinely used postoperative analgesia methods—intravenous analgesia, thoracic epidural analgesia (TEA), and bilateral erector spinae plane block (ESPB)—in adults undergoing open-heart surgery via median sternotomy. No interventions are assigned by the protocol; patients receive the analgesia chosen by the treating anesthesia team, reflecting real-world practice at a single tertiary cardiac center. The primary outcome is chronic postoperative pain at 3 months measured with the Numeric Rating Scale and the S-LANSS questionnaire, collected by telephone or in-person follow-up. Secondary outcomes include acute postoperative pain scores, additional analgesic consumption, extubation and mobilization times, ICU and hospital length of stay, respiratory complications, and perioperative hemodynamic and related parameters.

Why it matters

Who can join: the full rules

Inclusion Criteria:

* Adults aged 18 to 85 years
* Classified as ASA physical status I-III
* Scheduled to undergo open heart surgery with median sternotomy
* BMI \< 35 kg/m²
* Able to understand and provide written informed consent
* Eligible to receive any of the routine analgesia methods (intravenous analgesia, thoracic epidural analgesia, or erector spinae plane block)

Exclusion Criteria:

* Age \< 18 or \> 85 years
* BMI ≥ 35 kg/m²
* Coagulation disorders
* Infection at the intervention site
* Known allergy to local anesthetics or induction agents
* Psychiatric disorders limiting cooperation
* Use of chronic pain medications, antidepressants, corticosteroids, antiepileptics, or routine analgesics
* Inability to cooperate, communicate, or follow commands
* Physical or verbal performance impairment
* Previous open heart surgery

Where it's running

• Karadeniz Technical University Farabi Hospital
  Trabzon, Trabzon, Turkey (Türkiye) Recruiting

Study contacts

• Study coordinator: Ali AKDOGAN, MD
• Email: draliakdogan@yahoo.com
• Phone: +905322605414

Similar studies

Other studies for the same condition or treatment. Recruiting studies are listed first.

• Anterior Knee Nerves Block vs Femoral Nerve Block for Knee Arthroscopy

  This trial tests whether an anterior nerves of the knee (ANK) block provides similar pain relief to a femoral nerve block after knee arthroscopy in adults, aiming to reduce quadriceps weakness.

  Recruiting Van Training and Research Hospital · Van · NCT07910500

• Two Ways to Help Pain After Breast Surgery: Education-Based Analgesia vs Standard Care

  This trial tests whether teaching patients about pain management and using a multimodal pain plan improves pain control and recovery after breast surgery compared with standard care.

  Recruiting University General Hospital of Heraklion · Heraklion, Crete · NCT07880223

• Gastrocnemius plane block for foot and ankle surgery

  This study tests whether a gastrocnemius plane block can reduce pain after foot and ankle surgery and lessen the use of opioid pain medicines in adults.

  Recruiting Cairo University · Cairo, Governorate · NCT07877974

• Esmolol vs Dexmedetomidine for opioid-sparing in laparoscopic gynecologic surgery

  This study tests whether low-dose esmolol or dexmedetomidine, given during surgery, reduces opioid use and improves pain control after laparoscopic hysterectomy compared with placebo.

  Recruiting National and Kapodistrian University of Athens · Athens · NCT07846722

• See if virtual reality headsets can help with pain and anxiety after open-heart surgery

  This randomized trial tests whether using virtual reality headsets after open-heart surgery reduces pain and anxiety and improves satisfaction and physiological measures compared with standard care.

  Recruiting Dokuz Eylul University · Izmir · NCT07843511

• See if hypotension during anesthesia induction relates to tissue oxygen in open-heart surgery

  This study tests whether post-induction hypotension in open-heart surgery patients can be predicted using arterial and tissue oxygenation measures.

  Recruiting Haseki Training and Research Hospital · Istanbul, Sultangazi · NCT07831252

How to take part

1. Review the eligibility criteria above with your treating physician.
2. Check the official listing on ClinicalTrials.gov for the latest contact details and recruitment status.
3. Contact the study coordinator or principal investigator to ask for pre-screening. Pre-screening is free and never obligates you to enroll.