Effect of Gabapentin on Postoperative Opioid Analgesic Use and Pain in Adolescents Undergoing Tonsillectomy

August 26, 2021 updated by: Farzana Afroze, Albany Medical College
This study aims to determine if administration of gabapentin preoperatively followed by a standing postoperative course is effective in reducing and possibly eliminating the use of opioid analgesics following this procedure. As a secondary outcome, it will evaluate the possible improvement in post tonsillectomy pain control with the use of a standing dose of gabapentin.

Study Overview

Detailed Description

This is a prospective, randomized, non-blinded control trial designed to determine if administration of gabapentin postoperatively is effective in reducing and possibly eliminating the use of opioid analgesics following tonsillectomies in the adolescent population.

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Actual)

17

Phase

  • Phase 4

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

    • New York
      • Albany, New York, United States, 12208
        • Albany Medical Center

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Ages Eligible for Study

12 years to 18 years (ADULT, CHILD)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Genders Eligible for Study

All

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Patients aged 12-18.
  • Patient scheduled for elective tonsillectomy +/- adenoidec-tomy, +/- BMTs.
  • ASA physical status I and II.

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Severe upper respiratory tract infections.
  • Patients who are actively on gabapentin or pregabalin, pre-existing with pain syndromes, chronic use of opioids, allergy to gabapentin, acetaminophen, and or NSAIDs
  • Patient who lacks of fluency in English or inability to communicate pain.
  • Patient who has severe asthma, bleeding disorders, and history of gastrointestinal bleeding, epilepsy, renal impairment or any other medical problem that in the opinion of the investigator would interfere with study population.

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: TREATMENT
  • Allocation: RANDOMIZED
  • Interventional Model: PARALLEL
  • Masking: NONE

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm
Intervention / Treatment
EXPERIMENTAL: Gabapentin
Patients in the gabapentin group will receive gabapentin preoperatively, one time dose of 10 mg/kg PO (maximum dose 600 mg) and will resume scheduled doses postoperatively of PO gabapentin, 300 mg PO every 8 hours, in addition to acetaminophen and ibuprofen for 7 days postoperative. Acetaminophen 15mg/kg PO (max 1 gm) every 4-6 hours as needed for pain, max dose 4 gm per day; Ibuprofen 4-10 mg/kg PO divided over 8 hours as needed for pain, max dose 40 mg/kg/day; gabapentin, 10 mg/kg standing every 8 hours (22).
Patients in the gabapentin arm may at any point call the Pediatric ENT clinic if pain is not adequately controlled. Patients will be prescribed hydrocodone acetaminophen solution 7.5mg-325mg/15mL 5mL for ages 12-14 yrs and 10 mL for ages 15-18yrs, q 4-6 hours as needed for pain. Patients will be informed to stop taking gabapentin.
Other Names:
  • Neurontin
ACTIVE_COMPARATOR: Hydrocodone
Patients in the hydrocodone group will receive scheduled doses of hydrocodone, acetaminophen and ibuprofen at scheduled doses. Acetaminophen 15mg/kg (max 1 gm) every 4-6 hours as needed for pain, max dose 4 gm per day; Ibuprofen 4-10 mg/kg PO divided over 8 hours as needed for pain, max dose 40 mg/kg/day; hydrocodone acetaminophen solution 7.5mg-325mg/15mL 5mL for ages 12-14yrs and 10 mL for ages 15-18yrs, q 4-6 hours as needed for pain.
Patients in the hydrocodone group will receive scheduled doses of hydrocodone, acetaminophen and ibuprofen at scheduled doses. Acetaminophen 15mg/kg (max 1 gm) every 4-6 hours as needed for pain, max dose 4 gm per day; Ibuprofen 4-10 mg/kg PO divided over 8 hours as needed for pain, max dose 40 mg/kg/day; hydrocodone acetaminophen solution 7.5mg-325mg/15mL 5mL for ages 12-14yrs and 10 mL for ages 15-18yrs, q 4-6 hours as needed for pain.
Other Names:
  • no other intervention names applicable

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Total opioid equivalent dose
Time Frame: Through completion of the study. Time frame per subject is 7 days.
The primary outcome variable will be the total opioid equivalent dose recorded over two weeks. The proposed study will test the null hypothesis that the two population (gabapentin and placebo) means are equal. The criterion for significance (alpha) has been set at 0.050. The test is 2-tailed, which means that an effect in either direction will be interpreted.
Through completion of the study. Time frame per subject is 7 days.

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Post operative pain score determined by Visual Analog Survey Scale
Time Frame: Through completion of the study. Time frame per subject is 7 days.
Pain severity, The pain VAS is a unidimensional measure of pain intensity. Scale ranges from 1-10. Score of 0 indicates no pain. Score of 1-3 indicates mild pain, score of 4-6 indicates moderate pain, score of 6 is severe pain, score of 7-9 is very severe pain, and a score of 10 is worst pain possible.
Through completion of the study. Time frame per subject is 7 days.
Medication Adverse Effect
Time Frame: Through completion of the study. Time frame per subject is 7 days.
Patient reported adverse effect to medications given
Through completion of the study. Time frame per subject is 7 days.

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Publications and helpful links

The person responsible for entering information about the study voluntarily provides these publications. These may be about anything related to the study.

General Publications

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (ACTUAL)

August 4, 2017

Primary Completion (ACTUAL)

May 19, 2021

Study Completion (ACTUAL)

May 19, 2021

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

August 4, 2019

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

August 26, 2021

First Posted (ACTUAL)

August 27, 2021

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (ACTUAL)

August 27, 2021

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

August 26, 2021

Last Verified

August 1, 2021

More Information

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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