[Post-operative pain management in hospitals]

Abstract

Background: Relief of post-operative pain has a bearing on the patient's well-being, mobilisation and time confined to bed. The article discusses indications, contraindications and the efficacy of the various treatment modalities.

Material and method: We have examined review articles, meta-analyses and randomised controlled trials, identified through literature searches in PubMed.

Results: The use of several medicines and techniques (multimodal pain treatment) is necessary to achieve a good balance between pain relief, side effects and risk. Systemic administration of paracetamol, NSAIDs, opioids and glucocorticoids is effective for post-operative pain. The same applies to epidural analgesia, peripheral nerve blocks and local anaesthetic wound infiltration. Subanaesthetic doses of ketamine have an opioid-sparing effect, but the optimal dosing regimen is uncertain. Gabapentinoids have an effect on post-operative pain, but the effect appears to vary depending on the type of operation and analgesic regimen. The effect of one analgesic will depend on which other drugs are used in multimodal pain treatment. Epidural analgesia, peripheral nerve blocks or extensive local infiltration analgesia is often necessary to relieve movement-related pain.

Interpretation: Many treatment modalities are effective for post-operative pain. It is crucial that the treatment is well organised and that it includes routines for systematic pain assessment, efficacy and side effects of the pain management.