Single shot vs. catheter: which pain block is better for belly surgery?
NCT ID NCT05972018
First seen Jun 26, 2026 · Last updated Jun 26, 2026
Summary
This study compares two methods of pain control for people having open abdominal surgery. One group gets a single injection of a long-lasting numbing medicine into the belly muscles during surgery. The other group gets a standard numbing medicine through small tubes placed in the belly muscles that deliver medicine continuously for a few days. The study will look at costs, complications, pain levels, and how satisfied patients are.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- liposomal bupivacaine (Exparel) and bupivacaine mixture, or ropivacaine (Naropin)
- What this could lead to
- If successful, this could show that a single shot of long-lasting numbing medicine works as well as a catheter for pain control after abdominal surgery, potentially simplifying care and reducing costs.
- What could go wrong
- This is a very small pilot study with only 14 people, so results may not apply to everyone. It is testing feasibility, not proving a new treatment works better.
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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Phase 4
Runs after approval, following long-term safety and how well the treatment works in everyday use.
- Participants
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About 14 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Started
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Oct 2023
- Expected to finish
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Dec 2026
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 80 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: 1. Patients aged 18-80 years 2. Patients scheduled for elective vascular surgery with an open mid-abdominal laparotomy incision, including abdominal aortic aneurysm repair surgery (AAA), mesenteric artery bypass surgery, and aortobifemoral bypass surgery for aortic occlusive disease. 3. Patients who are able to speak and read English 4. Patients with American Society of Anesthesiology (ASA) physical status score I-IV 5. Patients who are admitted to the hospital and are incidentally discovered to require any of the aforementioned surgeries, being asymptomatic for vascular issues, and having their surgery scheduled no sooner than three days after admission, are also considered eligible. Exclusion Criteria: 1. Emergency vascular reconstruction surgery., patients admitted to the hospital due to symptoms directly associated with their vascular condition, such as severe abdominal pain or a ruptured aneurysm causing bleeding, will be excluded. 2. Patients with contraindications to RSB, including but not limited to anatomical abnormality, previous surgical intervention that limits or prevents receiving bilateral RSBs, or infection at the injection site. 3. History of allergy to local anesthetics. 4. Weight \< 40 kg, as a combination of 20 mL of Bupivacaine 0.25% with 30 mL of LB is greater than the maximal dose allowed, given concern for local anesthetic toxicity. 5. Patients who take long-acting opioid medication, or on continuous opioid use \> 50 MME per day for at least 30 days within 90 days prior to surgery. 6. Patients who have chronic pain syndrome with a recent preoperative consultation with the chronic pain service. Also, patients with distant metastatic cancers (e.g. bone, lung, brain) confirmed by CT scan. 7. Patients with current substance abuse, or history of substance abuse within 3 months, this includes any illicit drugs (not including marijuana) or excessive alcohol consumption as defined as 4 or more drinks per day or 8 or more drinks per week for women and 5 or more drinks per day or 15 or more drinks per week for men. 8. Lack or refusal to sign the study consent. 9. Patients who are unable to receive postoperative ropivacaine intermittent boluses within the first 5 days after surgery due to issues with their catheter (such as dislodgement, migration, or kinking) will be excluded from the final analysis. 10. Patients with a plan to undergo abdominal wall surgery, in addition to the vascular surgery that involves a mid-abdomen incision, such as abdominal wall reconstruction surgery. The additional abdominal wall incisions or interventions might have an impact on the study's pain, opioid, and LOS outcomes.
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Conditions
The condition(s) this trial relates to.
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 places running it
1 site. The list below names each one and where it is.
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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.
Contacts and locations
Locations
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Hartford Hospital
RECRUITINGHartford, Connecticut, 06102, United States
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