Six Years of Quality Improvement in Pectus Excavatum Repair: Implementation of Intercostal Nerve Cryoablation and ERAS Protocols for Patients Undergoing Nuss Procedure
Topic overview
Six-year quality improvement study demonstrates that intercostal nerve cryoablation reduced hospital stay by 62% and opioid use by 87% in Nuss procedure patients. Adding ERAS protocols further decreased discharge opioids by 83% and postoperative pain scores by 25%, showing synergistic benefits for pectus excavatum repair outcomes.
Key takeaways
- Intercostal nerve cryoablation reduced hospital stay by 62% and inpatient opioid use by 87% compared to epidural analgesia alone.
- Adding ERAS protocol to cryoablation further decreased discharge opioids by 83% and postoperative day-one pain scores by 25%.
- Cryoablation increased operative time by 25% but significantly improved recovery metrics without increasing complications.
- Combined cryoablation and ERAS protocols offer synergistic benefits for pain control and faster discharge after Nuss procedure.
- Quality improvement approach demonstrates feasibility of reducing opioid exposure in pediatric chest wall surgery.
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