Comparison of ultrasound-guided supraclavicular and infraclavicular approaches for brachial plexus blockade/Brakiyal pleksus blogunda ultrason esliginde supraklavikuler ve infraklavikuler yaklasimin karsilastirilmasi

Objectives: Ultrasound-guided supraclavicular and infraclavicular blocks are commonly used for upper extremity surgery. The primary aims of our study were to compare block success, block onset times and performance times; secondary aims were to compare the number of needle advancements, and incidence of adverse events of ultrasound-guided supraclavicular or infraclavicular blocks. Methods: 110 patients were randomized into two groups: supraclavicular (Group S) and infraclavicular (Group I). All the patients were given a mixture of 20 ml 0.5% levobupivacaine and 10 ml 2% lidocaine as local anesthetics. The sensory score of the seven terminal nerves was assessed every 10 min for 30 min. Results: Block success (Group I: 92.7%; Gorup S: 83.6%) and block onset time (Group 1:12.5 [+ or -] 4.8; Group S: 11.6 [+ or -] 3.9 min) were similar between the groups. Block performance time was shorter in Group I, than Group S (194.4 [+ or -] 65; 226.3 [+ or -] 59 sec, P