New hip block could cut opioid use after surgery
NCT ID NCT04301687
First seen Jun 25, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026 · Updated 1 time
Summary
This study tests whether a targeted injection of numbing medicine around the hip joint can reduce pain and the need for opioid painkillers after hip replacement surgery. Half of the 95 participants will get the active nerve block, and half will get a placebo (salt water) injection. Neither the patients nor the doctors will know who got which treatment. The goal is to see if this simple procedure improves recovery and reduces opioid use.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- Ropivacaine (local anesthetic)
- What this could lead to
- If it works, this could offer a better way to manage pain after hip replacement, reducing the need for strong painkillers like opioids.
- What could go wrong
- This is a small, early-stage trial. The nerve block may not provide significant pain relief compared to placebo, and there are risks like infection or nerve damage, though rare.
This is an AI summary of the original study and may miss details. Read our disclaimer.
Study facts
What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.
- Phase
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Not a phased trial
Phase numbers describe drug development. The registry uses this when they do not apply, as it does for trials of devices, procedures or behaviour changes, and for observational studies.
- Participants
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About 95 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Expected to start
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Dec 2026
An estimate. Start dates often move.
- Expected to finish
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Dec 2028
An estimate. End dates often move.
- Lead sponsor
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Other sponsor
The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.
Who can take part
This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.
- Ages
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18 to 85 years
- Sex
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Anyone
- Healthy volunteers
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Not accepted
This study is not open to healthy volunteers. The entry requirements below say who it is open to.
Show the full entry requirements Hide the full entry requirements
Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.
Inclusion Criteria: * ASA I-III patients * Ages 18-60yrs * BMI ≤ 35 kg/m2 Exclusion Criteria: * Preexisting neurological deficits or peripheral neuropathy in the distribution of femoral, obturator, or lateral cutaneous nerves * Local infection * Contra-indication to regional anesthesia e.g. bleeding diathesis, coagulopathy * Chronic pain disorders * History of use of over 30mg oxycodone or equivalent per day * Contraindication to a component of multi-modal analgesia * Allergy to local anesthetics * History of significant psychiatric conditions that may affect patient assessment * Pregnancy * Inability to provide informed consent * Patient refusal of FAB * Revision arthroscopy surgeries
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As listed by the trial registrant
The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.
How to take part
Only the study team decides who joins. These are the ways to reach them.
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The official record
ClinicalTrials.gov lists the study team's own contact details, including names and phone numbers. We don't republish those.
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A doctor treating you
A doctor who knows your case can contact a study site on your behalf, and can tell you whether this study is worth pursuing at all.
More trials for these conditions
Other studies related to the condition(s) this trial covers.
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- Push-Button sedation: could patients control their own calm during surgery?
- Study links Pre-Surgery anxiety and frailty in elderly hip patients