Good control of the pain without excessive use of opiates supports the benefits of minimally invasive surgical procedure.~This study is to examine the efficacy of continuously via surgically placed intercostal catheter administered ropivacaine at a flow rate of 6-8 ml/h of 2 mg/ml on post-operative pain (NRS) and pulmonary function (FEV1, PEF) during a maximum of 72 ± 2 hours after skin closure. Patients undergoing video-assisted thoracoscopic anatomical resection of the lung under general anaesthesia with confirmed or anticipated Stage I Lung cancer will be included. The study will be conducted as superiority, double-blind, placebo-controlled, randomized. The efficacy of loco-regional administered ropivacaine will be compared to placebo (NaCl, 0.9%) administration. The whole study period per participant is expected to be 6 months. In the follow-up, 6 months after surgery, the impact of ropivacaine on long-term pain (NRS, McGill) and pulmonary function (FEV1, PEF) shall be evaluated.
This study is to examine the analgesic effectiveness of continuous loco-regional analgesic application (ropivacaine) through surgically placed Intercostal Catheter (ICC) and to establish correctly this method as a possible standard of care in the postoperative analgesia after Video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS) anatomical lung resection.