Comparison of femoral nerve block and acupuncture analgesia for acute preoperative pain in elderly patients with femoral neck fracture: a retrospective study

Objective: This study was to compare the efficacy of femoral nerve block (FNB) and acupuncture for acute preoperative pain in patients with femoral neck fracture (FNF). Methods: From June 2017 to June 2019, 130 patients with FNF were included in this study. Sixty-six patients received FNB treatment (FNB group) and sixty-four patients received acupuncture treatment (Acupuncture group). The clinical information, visual analog scale (VAS) scores, nursing quality scores, sleep quality scores, delirium numbers, and perioperative complications were collected and compared between the 2 groups. Results: The resting VAS score and the exercise VAS score decreased after FNB or acupuncture in both groups. Thirty minutes after analgesia, the resting VAS scores in the FNB group and the acupuncture group were 27.3 +/- 8.0 and 27.9 +/- 7.8, respectively (P=0.67); while exercise VAS scores were 60.2 +/- 10.4 and 59.5 +/- 9.8, respectively (P=0.73). In addition, there was no statistical difference in the VAS score between the two groups on day 1 and day 2 after admission. There was no statistical difference in nursing quality, sleep rhythm disorder, sleep quality, or times of mental disorder between the two groups. Conclusion: FNB analgesia and acupuncture analgesia are safe and effective for the control of acute preoperative pain in senile patients with femoral neck fracture. Both methods have good analgesic effects, which can improve nursing and sleep quality, and reduce the incidence of delirium. As a traditional Chinese medicine method, acupuncture analgesia can effectively manage the acute preoperative pain in senile femoral neck fracture patients.