Lesser Palatine Nerve Block in Peritonsillar Abscess Drainage: a Prospective and Controlled Study

Determine the efficacy of the lesser palatine nerve block (LPNB) in pain management during and after peritonsillar abscess (PTA) drainage. A single-center, prospective, controlled study conducted in a tertiary referral center between April 2015 and September 2017. Twenty-four patients with a PTA were selected initially for our study. Two patients were excluded due to parapharyngeal and mediastinal extension. The remaining 22 patients were divided into two groups: the first group comprised 10 patients who underwent ipsilateral LPNB before PTA drainage. The second (control) group consisted of 12 patients in which only 10% lidocaine spray was used before PTA drainage. Intraoperative and postoperative pain was evaluated using a questionnaire with a 10-point numeric scale. The mean pain score in the study group was 1.9 (50% of the patients reported no pain) and it was 8.4 in the control group. The mean postoperative pain score after surgical drainage was 0.8 (60% of patients reported no pain) in the study group and 3.3 in the control group. No complications of the procedure were reported. The LPNB is a simple, safe, and efficacious anesthetic technique to reduce pain in patients undergoing surgical drainage of a PTA.