Acute pain after cardiac surgery is prevalent, with most individuals experiencing moderate to severe pain despite treatment with medication. There is evidence that significant pain in the days immediately following cardiac surgery is predictive of subsequent chronic postoperative pain. Although high-dose, short-acting analgesics remain the cornerstone of pain management in cardiac surgical patients, these opioids may provide inadequate pain control and cause undesirable adverse consequences. One potential alternative, termed “superficial parasternal intercostal plane block”, involves the insertion of catheters to direct administration of a local anesthetic. The EPOCH CardioLink-10 trial will provide critical insight on how intermittent superficial parasternal intercostal plane blocks with the local anesthetic ropivacaine may affect postoperative pain control in individuals who have undergone cardiac surgery.
