Nerve block may help you breathe easier after belly surgery
NCT ID NCT03725527
First seen Jun 26, 2026 · Last updated Jun 26, 2026
Summary
This study is testing whether a rectus sheath block, a numbing injection into the abdominal wall, can improve breathing and reduce pain in 60 adults undergoing major upper abdominal surgery. Participants will receive the block and be monitored for diaphragm movement and pain levels. The goal is to see if this approach offers better recovery than standard care.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- Rectus sheath block (a numbing injection into the abdominal wall muscles)
- What this could lead to
- If it works, this could offer a better way to manage pain and help patients breathe easier after abdominal surgery.
- What could go wrong
- This is a small, early-stage study with only 60 participants. The results may not apply to everyone, and the block may not work better than standard pain relief.
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 60 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Started
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May 2020
- Expected to finish
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Jan 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 50 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.
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Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.
Inclusion Criteria: * Age: 18-50 years. * Sex: both males and females. * BMI\< 30kg/m2. * ASA physical status: 1, II and III. * Elective abdominal surgery with midline incisions. Exclusion Criteria: * Patient refusal. * Infection at injection site * Coagulation disorders. * Allergy to study medications. * Pregnancy. * Respiratory tract infection within the last 2 weeks. * Urgent abdominal surgery
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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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Assiut university main hospital, ICUs
RECRUITINGAsyut, Assiut Governorate, 715715, Egypt
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