Various methods may be performed to reduce the use of systemic opioids and for effective pain treatment following mastectomy and axillary dissection surgery. Ultrasound (US)-guided interfascial plane blocks have been used increasingly due to the advantages of ultrasound in anesthesia practice.~The US-guided erector spina plane block (ESPB) provides thoracic analgesia at T5 level and abdominal analgesia at T7-9 level. ESPB contains a local anesthetic injection into the deep fascia of erector spinae. Visualization of sonoanatomy is easy, and the spread of local anesthesic agents can be easily seen under the erector spinae muscle. Thus, analgesia occurs in several dermatomes with cephalad-caudad way. In the literature, it has been reported that ESP block provides effective analgesia after several surgeries such as open heart surgery, breast surgery, thoracoscopic and abdominal operations.~The aim of this study is to compare the efficacy of the different volumes of US-guided ESPB for postoperative analgesia after mastectomy and axillary dissection surgery. The primary aim is to compare postoperative opioid consumption, and the secondary aim is to evaluate pain scores (VAS), and adverse effects related with opioids (allergic reaction, nausea, vomiting).
Postoperative pain is an important issue in female patients underwent breast surgery. Postoperative effective pain treatment provides early mobilization and shorter hospital stay. The US-guided erector spina plane block (ESPB) may be used for postoperative pain treatment following breast surgery. It is a relatively novel interfascial block that was defined by Forero et al. It has been reported that ESPB provides effective analgesia management for several breast surgeries.