Procedural Pain Management in Neonates, Infants and Children

Abstract

Neonates, infants and children all feel pain and require analgesia for painful procedures.Many painful procedures are associated with medical interventions, including immunisation, heel lance, venesection, IV cannulation and dressing change.Untreated pain can have short and long term effects, including sensitisation to pain episodes in later life.A range of non-pharmacological and pharmacological interventions have been shown to be effective for procedural pain management in infants and children, and are most effective when used in combination.Developmental changes in pain responses, analgesic response and drug pharmacokinetics need to be taken into account when planning procedural pain management for neonates.Comprehensive evidence based guidelines are available to guide effective procedural pain management in neonates, infants and older children.

Keywords: analgesics; paediatrics; pain; prevention and control.