Background
Nerve block reduces anesthetics requirement, allows faster recovery, and reduces postoperative pain. The modified pectoral plane block (PECS II) and the erector spinae plane block (ESP) have been proposed for nerve block in men undergoing breast surgery for gynecomastia.
Results
PECS II group had more favorable outcomes compared to the ESP group, evident by the significantly less total morphine consumption in 24 h (6.09 vs. 14.26 mg, ≤ 0.001) and the significantly higher effective analgesic time (6.57 vs. 4.91 h, ≤ 0.001). In addition, there were no intraoperative or postoperative complications recorded in both groups.
Conclusions
For men undergoing elective surgical treatment of gynecomastia, the ultrasound-guided modified PECS II is superior to the ESP in terms of opioid requirement, analgesic doses, and pain intensity.