A prospective double blinded randomized study of anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction with hamstrings tendon and spinal anesthesia with or without femoral nerve block

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32 patients with a tear of the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) and scheduled for reconstruction under spinal anaesthesia were randomized to the procedure with and without a femoral nerve block. The purpose of this study was to compare clinical outcomes between the two groups up to 7 days postoperatively. Patients who received the femoral nerve block had significantly decreased pain during the first 6 hours post-surgery, but demonstrated higher pain scores from the third to seventh postoperative day. Regardless of group, patients had similar additional analgesic requirements, early functional outcomes in daily activities, and progressive improvement in knee joint range of movement.