Efficiency of the Quadratus Lumborum Block for Post-operative Analgesia in Abdominoplasty Surgery

Abdominoplasty is a common surgical procedure in plastic surgery which causes postoperative pain and may delay patients' recovery. Surgery is potentially associated with a number of postoperative complications, whether cardiovascular, respiratory, infectious, thromboembolic, or digestive … Although they do not inevitably lead to a life-threatening prognosis, in many cases these complications delay post-operative recovery. Defined in the 1990s by Professor Henry Kehlet's Danish team, rapid rehabilitation after planned surgery is an approach to overall patient care that aims to rapidly restore previous physical and mental capacities and thus significantly reduce mortality and morbidity. Pain management is at the heart of this program and local anesthesia techniques are at the heart of early rehabilitation programs.

Described for just over a decade, Quadratus Lumborum Block (QLB) have shown their effectiveness for analgesia in abdominal, or orthopedic, or obstetrical surgery. Considering the anatomical territory concerned, this locoregional anesthesia technique seems to be very interesting in abdominoplasty to allow early rehabilitation of the patient.