Serum Levels of Bupivacaine After Bilateral Ultrasound-Guided Deep Parasternal Intercostal Plane Block in Cardiac Surgery with Median Sternotomy

Objective: To evaluate systemic levels of bupivacaine after bilateral ultrasound-guided deep parasternal intercostal plan (PIP) block in cardiac surgical patients undergoing median sternotomy. Design: Prospective, observational study Setting: Single institution; academic university hospital Participants: Twenty-eight adult patients undergoing cardiac surgery with median sternotomy received a PIP block with 2.5 mg/kg bupivacaine with or without dexamethasone and dexmedetomidine. Measurements: Arterial blood samples were analyzed for total serum bupivacaine concentration at 5, 15, 30, 45, 60, 90, 120, and 150 minutes after placement of PIP. Local anesthetic volume, local anesthetic adjuncts, time to extubation, postoperative pain scores, and opioid consumption were recorded. Main Results: The mean peak bupivacaine concentration was 0.60 f 0.62 m g/mL, and the mean time to maximum concentration (Tmax) was 16.92 f 12.97 minutes. Two patients (7.1%) had a concentration > 2.0 m g/mL within 15 minutes of block placement. The mean Tmax of bupivacaine was significantly greater in patients who did not receive additives compared to those patients who did (22.86 f 14.77 minutes v 10.0 f 5.22 minutes; p = .004). The times to extubation and postoperative pain were not improved with additives. Conclusions: Bilateral PIP placed at the end of cardiac surgery resulted in low systemic bupivacaine levels. The inclusion of additives shortened Tmax without improving outcome.