Thoracic Epidural Analgesia for Acute Pancreatitis With Early Organ Dysfunction (TEA-APOD)

Effect of Thoracic Epidural Analgesia on Organ Support Burden in Patients With Acute Pancreatitis and Early Organ Dysfunction: A Single-Center Randomized Controlled Trial

Acute pancreatitis may cause early respiratory, cardiovascular, or renal dysfunction and may require intensive care and organ support. Thoracic epidural analgesia may improve pain control, reduce systemic opioid exposure, and facilitate gastrointestinal recovery; however, its effect on overall organ support burden remains uncertain.

This is a single-center, prospective, randomized, open-label, parallel-group clinical trial. A total of 150 adults with acute pancreatitis within 72 hours of symptom onset and early respiratory, cardiovascular, or renal dysfunction will be randomized in a 1:1 ratio to receive either ropivacaine-only thoracic epidural analgesia plus standard care or standardized conventional analgesia plus standard care.

The primary outcome is alive and organ support-free days through day 14 after randomization. Secondary and exploratory outcomes include alive and organ support-free days through day 28, organ dysfunction-free days, ventilator-free days, renal replacement therapy-free days, vasoactive drug-free days, 28-day mortality, pain scores, systemic opioid exposure, gastrointestinal and nutritional outcomes, intra-abdominal pressure, inflammatory markers, complications, length of stay, hospital costs, and adverse events related to thoracic epidural analgesia.

Study Overview

• Status: Not yet recruiting
• Conditions: Organ Dysfunction; Acute Pancreatitis (AP); Organ Support
• Intervention / Treatment: Other: conventional analgesia; Procedure: Thoracic Epidural Analgesia With Ropivacaine

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Estimated): 150
• Phase: Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

• Study Contact: Name: Feng Yang, MM; Phone Number: +8615886524007; Email: 202020321@sr.gxmu.edu.cn

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: Adult; Older Adult
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: No

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

Inclusion Criteria:

1. Age 18 to 75 years, inclusive.
2. Diagnosis of acute pancreatitis based on at least two of the following three criteria: typical acute upper abdominal pain; serum amylase and/or lipase at least three times the upper limit of normal; or imaging findings consistent with acute pancreatitis.
3. Time from symptom onset to randomization of 72 hours or less.
4. Early respiratory, cardiovascular, or renal organ dysfunction, defined as a SOFA-2 subscore of 2 or greater in at least one of these three organ systems, requiring ICU admission for continuous monitoring and treatment. The SOFA-2 score will be calculated using the worst available values during the 24 hours before randomization; for participants admitted to the ICU for less than 24 hours, values available since ICU admission will be used. The organ dysfunction must be newly developed or clearly worsened from the participant's previous stable baseline.
5. Written informed consent provided by the participant or legally authorized representative.

Exclusion Criteria:

1. Pregnancy or lactation.
2. Chronic pancreatitis or acute pancreatitis associated with a pancreatic tumor.
3. Prior retroperitoneal drainage, endoscopic drainage, surgical necrosectomy, or other invasive intervention before randomization that may substantially alter the natural course of the disease.
4. Invasive mechanical ventilation before randomization.
5. Any contraindication to thoracic epidural analgesia, including allergy to local anesthetics; infection at the puncture site; epidural abscess or central nervous system infection; severe spinal deformity or prior spinal surgery that prevents catheterization; intracranial hypertension or severe central nervous system disease; uncorrected coagulation disorder; or anticoagulant or antiplatelet therapy that does not meet neuraxial safety requirements.
6. Uncorrected shock or persistent hemodynamic instability despite adequate fluid resuscitation and vasoactive drug support.
7. End-stage renal disease requiring maintenance dialysis before randomization.
8. Participation in another interventional clinical study within the previous 3 months.
9. Any other condition that, in the investigator's judgment, makes the participant unsuitable for enrollment.

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Primary Purpose: Treatment
• Allocation: Randomized
• Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
• Masking: None (Open Label)

Number of Arms

2

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
Active Comparator: Conventional Analgesia Group; Participants in this group will receive conventional analgesia and standard treatment for severe acute pancreatitis. Conventional analgesia may include non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, acetaminophen, tramadol, fentanyl, sufentanil, oxycodone, hydromorphone, morphine, dexmedetomidine, or other analgesic and sedative medications according to clinical judgment. Analgesic drugs, doses, routes, duration of administration, rescue analgesia, sedative use, and opioid consumption will be recorded.	Other: conventional analgesia; Conventional analgesia will be administered according to institutional practice and the participant's clinical condition. The analgesic target is an NRS score of 3 or less in conscious and communicative participants, or a CPOT score of 2 or less in non-communicative critically ill participants. Analgesic drugs, doses, routes, duration of administration, rescue analgesia, sedative use, and opioid consumption will be recorded.; Other Names: Standard analgesia; Conventional pain management; Systemic analgesia
Experimental: Thoracic Epidural Analgesia Group; Participants will receive standard treatment for acute pancreatitis plus thoracic epidural analgesia using ropivacaine alone. After initial fluid resuscitation, blood pressure stabilization, and safety assessment, thoracic epidural analgesia will be initiated as soon as possible after randomization, preferably within 6 hours, no later than 24 hours after randomization, and before 72 hours from symptom onset. Epidural catheterization will be performed at T8-T11, preferably T9-T10 or T10-T11, by an investigator qualified to perform neuraxial procedures and trained in the study protocol. After a negative test dose of 1% lidocaine 3 mL, a loading dose of 0.2% ropivacaine 5-10 mL will be administered, followed by continuous infusion of 0.2% ropivacaine at 6-8 mL/hour. The target sensory block is T6-T12 and should cover the main upper abdominal pain area. Thoracic epidural analgesia will generally continue for 5 days or until ICU discharge if earlier. It may be extended to a maximum of 7	Procedure: Thoracic Epidural Analgesia With Ropivacaine; Thoracic epidural block will be performed by an investigator qualified to perform neuraxial procedures and trained in the study protocol. Before catheterization, the clinical team will assess hemodynamic status, coagulation function, antithrombotic medication use, infection risk, respiratory status, and baseline neurological status. The puncture level will be selected according to the participant's condition and operator assessment, generally within the T7-T11 range to cover upper abdominal pain. After thoracic epidural catheter placement, a test dose of 1%-1.5% lidocaine 3 mL will be administered to exclude intrathecal or intravascular catheter placement. If the test dose is negative, a loading dose of ropivacaine may be administered, followed by continuous thoracic epidural infusion of ropivacaine alone. No epidural opioid, including sufentanil, fentanyl, or morphine, will be added to the epidural infusion in this study.; Other Names: TEA; Thoracic epidural analgesia; Thoracic epidural blockade; Thoracic epidural catheterization

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Alive and Organ Support-Free Days Through Day 14 (AOSFD-14)	Alive organ support-free days to day 14 is defined as the number of days from randomization to day 14 during which the participant is alive and free of ICU-level organ support. ICU-level organ support includes invasive mechanical ventilation, noninvasive ventilation, continuous infusion of vasoactive or inotropic drugs, and renal replacement therapy. A day will be counted as organ support-free only if the participant is alive and does not receive any of these organ support treatments on that day. Participants who die within 14 days after randomization will be assigned 0 alive organ support-free days.	From randomization through day 14

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Organ Failure-Free Days to Day 14	Number of days from randomization to day 14 during which the participant is alive and free of respiratory, cardiovascular, and renal organ failure. Organ failure is defined as a SOFA subscore of 2 or higher in any of the following systems: respiratory, cardiovascular, or renal. Participants who die within 14 days will be assigned 0 organ failure-free days.	From randomization to day 14
Alive Organ Support-Free Days to Day 28	Number of days from randomization to day 28 during which the participant is alive and free of ICU-level organ support, including invasive mechanical ventilation, noninvasive ventilation, vasoactive or inotropic drug infusion, and renal replacement therapy. Participants who die within 28 days will be assigned 0 days.	From randomization to day 28
Ventilator-Free Days to Day 28	Number of days from randomization to day 28 during which the participant is alive and free of invasive mechanical ventilation. Participants who die within 28 days will be assigned 0 ventilator-free days.	From randomization to day 28
Renal Replacement Therapy-Free Days to Day 28	Number of days from randomization to day 28 during which the participant is alive and free of renal replacement therapy. Renal replacement therapy includes continuous renal replacement therapy and intermittent hemodialysis for acute kidney injury. Participants who die within 28 days will be assigned 0 days.	From randomization to day 28
Vasoactive Drug-Free Days to Day 28	Number of days from randomization to day 28 during which the participant is alive and free of vasoactive or inotropic drug infusion. Vasoactive or inotropic drugs include norepinephrine, epinephrine, dopamine, vasopressin, dobutamine, or other agents used for shock or circulatory support. Participants who die within 28 days will be assigned 0 days.	From randomization to day 28
Analgesic Target Achievement Rate	Total systemic opioid consumption during the first 7 days after randomization, converted to intravenous morphine equivalent dose when applicable.	From randomization to day 7
Pain Score	Pain intensity will be assessed using the Numeric Rating Scale (NRS) in conscious and communicative participants, or the Critical-Care Pain Observation Tool (CPOT) in non-communicative critically ill participants. The NRS is an 11-point scale ranging from 0 (no pain) to 10 (worst possible pain). The CPOT ranges from 0 (no pain) to 8 (worst possible pain). For both scales, higher scores indicate worse pain control (worse outcome).	Baseline, 3-6 hours after intervention initiation, and days 1, 3, 5, and 7

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: First People's Hospital of Chenzhou
• Investigators: Study Chair: Xingui Dai, PHD, Chen Zhou NO.1 People's Hospital

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Estimated): August 1, 2026
• Primary Completion (Estimated): August 1, 2028
• Study Completion (Estimated): September 1, 2028

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: July 7, 2026
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: July 7, 2026
• First Posted (Actual): July 13, 2026

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): July 21, 2026
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: July 19, 2026
• Last Verified: July 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: Ropivacaine; acute pancreatitis; Opioid consumption; Thoracic epidural block; Organ support-free days
• Additional Relevant MeSH Terms: Digestive System Diseases; Pancreatic Diseases; Pancreatitis; Organic Chemicals; Diet, Food, and Nutrition; Physiological Phenomena; Food and Beverages; Anilides; Amides; Aniline Compounds; Amines; Beverages; Plant Preparations; Biological Products; Complex Mixtures; Ropivacaine; Tea
• Other Study ID Numbers: TEA-AP-001

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

• Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?: YES
• IPD Plan Description: Deidentified individual participant data underlying the published results may be made available upon reasonable request after publication of the main study results. Data sharing will require approval by the principal investigator and the institution, and by the ethics committee when applicable. Data will be shared only for scientifically valid analyses and after signing an appropriate data use agreement.
• IPD Sharing Time Frame: Beginning 6 months after publication of the main study results and available for 3 years.
• IPD Sharing Access Criteria: Qualified researchers may submit a written request including research purpose, analysis plan, requested data elements, and data protection measures. Requests will be reviewed by the principal investigator and the institution.
• IPD Sharing Supporting Information Type: STUDY_PROTOCOL

Drug and device information, study documents

• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product: No
• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product: No