Background. Total laparoscopic hysterectomy (TLH) causes various types of postoperative pain, and the pain pattern has not been evaluated in detail to date. This prospective observational study investigated the types of postoperative pain, intensity in the course of time, and pain characteristics during the first postoperative 72 hr after TLH.Methods. Sixty four female patients undergoing TLH were enrolled, which finally 50 patients were included for the data analyses. The locations of pain included overall pain, abdominal visceral and incisional pains, shoulder pain, and perineal pain. Assessments were made at rest and in motion, and pain level was scored with the use of the 100 mm visual analog scale. The pain was assessed at baseline, and at postoperative 30 min, 1 hr, 3 hr, 6 hr, 24 hr, 48 hr, and 72 hr.Results. Overall, visceral, and incisional pains were most intense on the day of operation and then decreased following surgery. In contrast, shoulder pain gradually increased, peaking at postoperative 24 hr. Shoulder pain developed in 90% of all patients (44/50). It was not more aggravated in motion than at rest, in comparison with other pains, and right shoulder pain was more severe than left shoulder pain (p=0.006). In addition, the preoperative exercise habit of patients increased the threshold of shoulder pain. Most patients (46/50) had perineal pain, which was more severe than abdominal pain in approximately 30% of patients (17/50).Conclusion. Pain after TLH showed considerably different duration, severity, and characteristics, compared with other laparoscopic procedures. Shoulder pain was most intense at postoperative 24 hr, and the intensity was associated with the prior exercise habit of patients and the high level of analgesic request.

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Endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD) is an advanced therapy for early gastric neoplasm and requires sedation with adequate analgesia. Lidocaine is a short-acting local anesthetic, and intravenous lidocaine has been shown to have analgesic efficacy in surgical settings. The aim of this study was to assess the effects of intravenous lidocaine on analgesic and sedative requirements for ESD and pain after ESD.Sixty-six patients scheduled for ESD randomly received either intravenous lidocaine as a bolus of 1.5 mg/kg before sedation, followed by continuous infusion at a rate of 2 mg/kg/h during sedation (lidocaine group; n = 33) or the same bolus and infusion volumes of normal saline (control group; n = 33). Sedation was achieved with propofol and fentanyl. The primary outcome was fentanyl requirement during ESD. We recorded hemodynamics and any events during ESD and evaluated post-ESD epigastric and throat pain.Fentanyl requirement during ESD reduced by 24% in the lidocaine group compared with the control group (105 ± 28 vs. 138 ± 37 μg, mean ± SD; P < 0.001). The lidocaine group reached sedation faster [40 (20–100) vs. 55 (30–120) s, median (range); P = 0.001], and incidence of patient movement during ESD decreased in the lidocaine group (3% vs. 26%, P = 0.026). Numerical rating scale for epigastric pain was significantly lower at 6 hours after ESD [2 (0–6) vs. 3 (0–8), median (range); P = 0.023] and incidence of throat pain was significantly lower in the lidocaine group (27% vs. 65%, P = 0.003). No adverse events associated with lidocaine were discovered.Administration of intravenous lidocaine reduced fentanyl requirement and decreased patient movement during ESD. Moreover, it alleviated epigastric and throat pain after ESD. Thus, we conclude that the use of intravenous adjuvant lidocaine is a new and safe sedative method during ESD.