Study Summary

One hundred eighty patients undergoing lumbar disc herniation surgery were randomized to receive paravertebral block (n=45), thoracolumbar interfascial plane block (n=45), retrolaminar block (n=45), or systemic analgesia alone (n=45). The primary outcome of interest was postoperative pain measured by visual analogue scale scores at 0, 1, 2, 6, 12, and 24 hours. Secondary outcomes of interest included rescue morphine consumption, quality of recovery-40 scores, motor block incidence, and adverse events. Outcomes were assessed up to 24 hours postoperatively. Overall, the results of the study revealed that thoracolumbar interfascial plane and retrolaminar blocks produced significantly lower pain scores and reduced opioid requirements compared with paravertebral block and systemic analgesia. These findings suggest that interfascial plane blocks may provide superior analgesia and improved recovery following lumbar disc herniation surgery.