Background　Thoracic paravertebral blockade(TPVB) is a regional nerve blocking technique by injecting local anesthetics into thoracic paravertebral space, adjacent to the intervertebral foramina, to block the roots of thoracic nerves. This technique can be performed under the guidance of anatomical markers or ultrasound, and has been widely applied in thoracic and abdominal surgeries for postoperative pain management.　Objective　To summarize anatomical basis and clinical application of TPVB.　Content　The injection sites of TPVB are located near thoracic paravertebral space(TPVS), which can be identified with traditional and ultrasound?蛳assisted methods. The local anesthetics including bupivacaine, lidocaine, and ropivacaine, were administered with TPVB to relieve pain in one?蛳sided thoracic and abdominal surgeries and chronic pain syndromes, and also to perform anesthesia in breast surgery. With satisfying analgesic and anesthetic effects, TPVB has less adverse effects than epidural and intravertebral anesthesia, and interpleural blockade.　Trend　TPVB under the guidance of ultrasound provides a safe drug injection technique for multimodal analgesia with similar efficacy to epidural and intravertebral injection, but less adverse effects. Further investigations are required to expand its application and to prevent related complications.