Study Summary

Seven randomized controlled trials containing a total of 508 knee and total hip arthroplasty patients were included in this meta-analysis comparing femoral nerve block (FNB; n=254) to fascia iliaca compartment block (FICB; n=254) for post-operative pain management. Primary outcomes of interest included pain on the visual analogue scale (VAS), total consumption of morphine, length of hospital stay, and incidence of nausea and vomiting. VAS pain scores were pooled at 12, 24, and 48 hours post-intervention. Subgroup analyses were also conducted for VAS pain at 12 hours by volume of local anesthetic drugs, methods of anesthesia, and surgery type. Meta-analysis results demonstrated that no statistical significant differences were observed for all pooled outcomes between FNB and FICB (p>0.05 for all).