Pregabalin for acute pain management: a shift in paradigm.

was observed in any of the patients. Case 5 had a laparoscopic hernia repair under general anaesthesia. A left-sided unilateral TAP block was performed as detailed above. Surgical time was 140 min. The prescribed postoperative pain relief consisted of i.m. morphine, oral acetaminophen, and diclofenac as required. No opioids were needed in the immediate postoperative period. The patient was considered to be fit for discharge 24 h after surgery. The TAP block has been found to be an effective method of providing postoperative analgesia in patients undergoing midline abdominal wall incision. Until now, the use of ultrasound-guided bilateral TAP blocks for laparoscopic surgery has not been tested. Our cases have shown that TAP blocks provide effective pain relief both intraoperatively and for several hours into the postoperative period after laparoscopic surgery. The use of TAP blocks reduced the need for intraoperative and postoperative opioids and the side-effects associated with their use. None of our patients was drowsy or required antiemetics in the postoperative period. Hence the technique is suitable for day-case laparoscopic surgery. The absence of shoulder tip pain has been a finding in all cases. We suggest that TAP blocks can be incorporated as part of the analgesia regimen for day-case laparoscopic surgery. TAP blocks under ultrasound guidance are easy to perform, provide consistent analgesia, and have displayed a good safety profile.