Regional anesthesia, particularly the use of peripheral nerve blocks, allows for localized, targeted anesthesia for surgical anesthesia and an adjunct to general anesthesia for postoperative pain control. Systemic, generalized adverse effects can be avoided by focusing on a specific anatomical location. Performing a targeted peripheral nerve block can also be a significant part of a multimodal analgesic approach to reduce opioid use.
The provider must have the appropriate equipment and a targeted nerve structure to perform a peripheral nerve block. When choosing a local anesthetic for a true surgical block, surgical duration should be considered. Literature has shown that one of the most critical factors of a successful peripheral nerve block is the mass or total dosage of the local anesthetic. Multiple adjuncts can be combined with local anesthetics to decrease the onset time, increase the duration, and increase the quality and density of the block.
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