Opioid-free anesthesia for patient undergoing breast cancer surgery: A case series

Abstract

Opioid-based anesthesia is associated with unwanted adverse effects such as postoperative nausea and vomiting, respiratory depression, itching, and urinary retention. Opioid-free anesthesia is a combination of multimodal analgesia that aims to avoid perioperative opioids altogether. Various methods, such as regional blocks, and drugs, such as lignocaine, dexmedetomidine, and ketamine, can be used to evade the use of opioids. Here, in a series of five cases undergoing breast cancer surgery, we attempt to use a combination of analgesic techniques that result in complete avoidance of opioids during the intraoperative period.