Simulation tools in ultrasound-guided regional anesthesia: developing a simple, inexpensive erector spinae plane (ESP) block teaching model

The erector spinae plane (ESP) block is an increasingly utilized regional block in the emergency department, representing one effective alternative or adjunct to opioid analgesia in patients presenting with rib fractures. While there is growing interest, its widespread adoption faces hurdles, such as a lack of appropriate training resources. Gelatin-based phantoms to simulate human anatomy have been widely used to facilitate ultrasound-guided procedures, although no such model for the ESP block has yet been defined in the literature. To address this gap, we sought to design and assemble an inexpensive, simple to build, reusable phantom to simulate the sonographic anatomy of the posterior thoracic wall and serve as a task trainer for an ultrasound-guided ESP block. This novel phantom model reproduces an ultrasonographic fascial plane using a gelatin medium and 3D-printed thoracic spine with ribs allowing for needle guidance and hydrodissection.