Study compares three analgesic blocks in dogs having lap OVE

A new retrospective study in Animals examined 98 dogs that underwent laparoscopic ovariectomy between 2020 and 2025 and compared three ultrasound-guided interfascial plane blocks for perioperative analgesia: transversus abdominis plane (TAP), quadratus lumborum (QL), and caudal thoracic paravertebral (C-TPV). According to the study abstract, QL was associated with lower intraoperative rescue opioid use, while the authors also evaluated block execution time, postoperative analgesic needs, intraoperative hypotension, and block-related complications. The paper adds to a growing veterinary literature around locoregional techniques for minimally invasive abdominal surgery, including prior randomized and prospective work on TAP and QL blocks in dogs undergoing laparoscopic ovariectomy. (pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov)

Why it matters: For veterinary professionals, the practical question is whether one regional technique offers more reliable opioid-sparing analgesia without adding meaningful risk or workflow burden. That matters as clinics continue to refine multimodal analgesia protocols, reduce perioperative opioid exposure where appropriate, and balance analgesic depth against hemodynamic stability and block time. Prior literature has suggested TAP primarily targets abdominal wall analgesia, while QL may provide broader somatic and visceral coverage through spread toward the paravertebral space, which helps explain why QL keeps surfacing as a strong option in canine abdominal procedures. (mdpi.com)

What to watch: The next step is whether prospective, head-to-head trials confirm this retrospective signal and clarify where C-TPV fits relative to TAP and QL in everyday spay and laparoscopic soft-tissue protocols. (pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov)