The aim of thoracotomy surgery is to explore the thoracic cavity and manage different pathologies including pulmonary, diaphragmatic, mediastinal, esophageal and vascular pathologies. It can be performed posterolaterally, anterolaterally or even anteriorly.~Post-thoracotomy Ipsilateral Shoulder Pain could undermine pain management in the post-thoracotomy patient.~Erector spinae plane block is a relatively novel block and was first described for chronic thoracic neuropathic pain in 2016. It is an inter-fascial plane block, but it may be classified as a paraspinal block due to its mechanism of action and injection site. It has been reported for a variety of indications, as in thoracic neuropathic pain and in postoperative analgesia after major open abdominal surgery. Erector spinae plane block has been successfully used to treat chronic shoulder pain, and the local anesthetic spread was reported to reach the level of C3 when it was performed at T2.~Ultrasound imaging made the practice of regional anesthesia easier in visualization and identification of usual and unusual position of nerves, blood vessels, needle during its passage through the tissues, as well as deposition and spread of local anesthetics in the desired plane and around the desired nerve.
To evaluate the effectiveness of ultrasound guided Erector Spinae Plane Block (ESPB) in controlling post thoracotomy ipsilateral shoulder pain.