Comparison between ultrasound-guided ilioinguinal/iliohypogastric nerve block and transversus abdominis plane block for postoperative pain control after open inguinal hernia repair

Aims and The purpose of this study was to compare ultrasound-guided ilioinguinal/iliohypogastric nerve block and transversus abdominis plane block for postoperative pain control after open inguinal hernia repair. 88 patients undergoing open inguinal hernia surgery in Rasoul e Akram Hospital were randomly assigned into two groups. One group received ultrasound-guided ilioinguinal/iliohypogastric nerve block and the other received transversus abdominis plane (TAP) block. Patients were monitored for visual analogue scale (VAS) scores at rest, in recovery, at 4, 8, 12,and 24h postoperatively, and also during walking at 24, 36 and 48h after surgery. The data was then analyzed using SPSS 22 software VAS pain scores were lower in ilioinguinal group than TAP block group both at rest and during movement. The difference was statistically significant during movement (p=0.017). In addition, analgesic satisfaction was significantly greater in the ilioinguinal group than the TAP block group (Mean score 2.43 vs. 1.84, p=0.001). Postoperative narcotic requirements was not statistically different between the two groups. This study suggests that ultrasound-guided ilioinguinal/iliohypogastric nerve block provided better pain control than transversus abdominis plane block after open inguinal hernia repair.