AzTrials
AzTrials

Postoperative PainPhase 4TAPNCT00970086

Transversus Abdominis Plane Block for Pain Relieve in Children Undergoing Groin Surgery

A Phase 4 study testing Bupivacain/levobupivacaine in people with Postoperative Pain and Reaction; Anesthesia, run by University Hospital, Basel, Switzerland at 1 site in Switzerland.

Terminated

Stopped early. The study ended before it was planned to and will not resume.

Official record
Search all trials

Trial summary

For surgery in the region of the lower abdominal wall the administration of local anesthetic drugs in the epidural space via the caudal route is the preferentially used technique since several decades. The transversus abdominis plane (TAP) block features the advantages of a peripheral nerve blockade. Read more about this study

Who is it for?
Ages 2 to 8 years
Conditions the study is for
Postoperative Pain, Reaction; Anesthesia
What is being tested?
Bupivacain/levobupivacaine
Could I receive a placebo?
No, everyone receives an active treatment
How many people
22 participants
Where
1 siteSwitzerland
Study dates
Aug 2009to Nov 2010
Phase
Phase 4
Are there results?
None posted in the registry

Key requirements

Who can take part, as listed by the sponsor. Only the study team can confirm whether you are eligible, so take this list to your doctor.

  • Ages 2 to 8 years
  • All sexes
  • No healthy volunteers
  • Child

Who may be able to join

  • Male and female children aged 2 - 8 years
  • physical status classification system (ASA) score I or II
  • Undergoing surgical interventions in the groin (hernia repair, funiculocele ectomy)

Who cannot join

  • Hypersensitivity to Levobupivacaine

Trial locations and contacts

1 site in 1 country.

Switzerland1 site
  • University Childrens Hospital of both Basel

    Basel, Basel, 4005

Other trials in Switzerland

About this study

Official title: Transversus Abdominis Plane Block for Pain Relieve in Children Undergoing Inguinal Surgical Procedures: How Does it Compare With the "Gold Standard" Caudal Blockade

For surgery in the region of the lower abdominal wall the administration of local anesthetic drugs in the epidural space via the caudal route is the preferentially used technique since several decades.

The transversus abdominis plane (TAP) block features the advantages of a peripheral nerve blockade. The aim of this study is to evaluate potential differences in the effectiveness of postoperative analgesia and to test the hypotheses that the duration of pain relieve ist prolonged after a TAP block when compared with an epidural technique.

Read the detailed description

Caudal block (CB) is the gold standard technique for analgesia in children undergoing surgical interventions in the groin.

Although the efficacy and the safety of this technique is high, nonetheless, there are several caveats such as unwarranted motor blockade of the lower limbs and disturbances of the bladder function, potentially resulting in delayed demission in the ambulatory setting. The effect of the blockade wears off within 4-5h post-block, making the administration of additional pain medication necessary.

Peripheral nerve blockades (PNB) are an alternative to CB and have a prolonged duration of the analgesic effect. More recently, an alternative method to block neural structures which innervate lower abdominal wall has been described; the transverse abdominal plane block. The ultrasound guided technique improves the safety of margin. However, although this new technique seems to offer substantial advantages so far only experience from small case series are available. In particular, the TAP block has not been compared in a systematic trial with the "gold standard", the caudal block.

Being tested
Bupivacain/levobupivacaine
Keywords
measure of postoperative pain, children undergoing groin surgery
Medical subject headings
Pain, Postoperative

What participants receive

What participants receive. In a randomised study each person is assigned to one group by chance.

  • Bupivacain/levobupivacaineDrug

    Caudal block: Identification of the epidural space with a loss of resistance technique. Administration of Bupivacain 1ml/kg 0.125%.

    Transversus abdominal plane block: Identification of the anatomical structures by the ultrasound technique, administration of 0.4ml/kg levobupivacaine 0.25%.

Study groups in NCT00970086
Study groupRoleWhat they receive
transversus abdominal plane blockExperimentalCaudal block: Identification of the epidural space with a loss of resistance technique. Administration of Bupivacain 1ml/kg 0.125%. Transversus abdominal plane block: Identification of the anatomical structures with ultrasound, insertion of the stimuplex needle G22, 50mm, in an in-plane approach and administration of 0.4ml/kg levobupivacaine 0.25%.
Receives: Drug: Bupivacain/levobupivacaine

What is being measured

The primary outcome is the main question the study is designed to answer.

  1. Efficacy of the postoperative analgesia: monitoring with KUSS or Smiley scale.

    Measured: 4 h postoperative and morning, 1 day postoperative

Timeline

From the start of the study to its completion; the mark is today. Estimated dates are the sponsor’s plan.

  1. First posted2 Sep 2009 (estimated)
  2. Study startAug 2009
  3. Primary completionNov 2010
  4. Study completionNov 2010

Why it stopped: Groin surgery was changed to a laparoscopic technique; recruitable patients ceased.

Resources

More details

For doctors and researchers: how the study is designed, who runs it, and its registry IDs.

Study design
Study type
Interventional
Phase
Phase 4
Primary purpose
Treatment
Allocation
Not applicable
Intervention model
Single group
Masking
Double blind
Who is masked
Participant, Care provider
Enrolment
22 participants (actual)
IDs, dates and publications
ClinicalTrials.gov ID
NCT00970086
Sponsor's protocol ID
UKBB_ANA_TAP
Acronym
TAP
Status last verified
Dec 2015
First submitted
25 Aug 2009
Last updated
3 Dec 2015
Results posted
No
Data monitoring committee
No

Questions about this trial

What is this clinical trial studying?

A Phase 4 study testing Bupivacain/levobupivacaine in people with Postoperative Pain and Reaction; Anesthesia, run by University Hospital, Basel, Switzerland at 1 site in Switzerland.

The full registered description is in the About this study section and the official record.

Who may be eligible to take part?

The sponsor lists 3 inclusion and 1 exclusion criteria. Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening, so read the full criteria and contact a listed site.

Is this clinical trial currently recruiting?

The record says: stopped early, as of the sponsor's last update on 3 Dec 2015. Status can change between updates, so confirm with the study contact before making plans.

Where is the study taking place?

The record lists 1 site in Switzerland. Whether a site is taking part right now should be confirmed with that site. See every site.

What are the possible benefits and risks?

They depend on the study and the treatment, and no study can promise a benefit. The study team explains the known risks during informed consent, before anyone joins; the record itself does not list them.

What does this phase mean?

Phase 4 studies take place after a treatment is approved, to learn more about its long-term benefits and risks in everyday use.

Not every study follows the same path, and some studies (observational studies, device studies) have no phase.

Are results available for this study?

The study was stopped early (reason given: Groin surgery was changed to a laparoscopic technique; recruitable patients ceased.). Results are not available in the source record.

How can a doctor refer a patient or contact the research team?

The record lists no contact. The official record names the sponsor, who can be asked directly. AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals.

What does the primary outcome measure?

Efficacy of the postoperative analgesia: monitoring with KUSS or Smiley scale. (time frame: 4 h postoperative and morning, 1 day postoperative). It is what the study was designed to measure, not a finding.

Where can I read the original study information?
Does a listing mean the treatment is approved or proven to work?

No. A listing means the study is registered. It does not show that the treatment is safe, works, or is approved by a regulator.

How often is this information updated?

AzTrials copies changed records from ClinicalTrials.gov every night and reloads the whole registry every week. The sponsor last updated this record on 3 Dec 2015.

Free account

Log in to keep searching

You’ve used your 3 free searches. AzTrials is free: log in or create a free account to keep searching clinical trials and save the ones you want to follow.

Create a free accountLog in