comparison of ilioinguinal/iliohypogastric nerve block and ilioinguinal/iliohypogastric nerve block plus genitofemoral nerve block in patients with chronic pelvic/groin pain: a retrospective quasi-experimental study

Background: chronic pelvic/groin pain (cp/gp) is a debilitating condition with various treatment options, including nerve blocks. this study aimed to compare the effectiveness of ilioinguinal/iliohypogastric (ii/ih) nerve block and the combination of genitofemoral (gf) and ii/ih nerve block in patients with cp/gp.methods: this retrospective quasi-experimental (longitudinal) study was conducted at labbafinejad hospital (shahid beheshti university of medical science, tehran, iran) and assessed the medical records of 54 patients with cp/gp. patients alternately received interventions from an experienced pain specialist. twenty-six patients received the ii/ih plus gfn block, and 28 patients received the ii/ih nerve block alone. visual analog scale (vas) scores (before and 1, 2, and 3 months after intervention) available in medical records were extracted for all patients.results: in the first (p=0.019), second (p=0.015), and third month (p=0.021) following the intervention, patients in the g+i group consistently reported significantly lower pain severity compared to patients in the i group. patients with pain from surgical causes demonstrated significantly better treatment response than those with idiopathic causes in the second (p=0.014, 0.021) and third months (p=0.015, 0.026) post-intervention in the g+i group compared to the i group.conclusion: both ii/ih nerve block and ii/ih nerve block plus gfn block are effective in treating cp/gp. however, patients who received ii/ih nerve block plus gfn block demonstrated a better treatment response than those who received ii/ih nerve block alone. additionally, it is worth noting that patients with pain from surgical causes reported lower pain intensity compared to patients with idiopathic causes in both treatment groups.