• Sergey Motov, Mahlaqa Butt, Aidin Masoudi, Wendy Palacios, Catsim Fassassi, Jefferson Drapkin, Antonios Likourezos, Rukhsana Hossain, Jason Brady, Nechama Rothberger, Peter Flom, Jessica Zerzan, and John Marshall.
• Department of Emergency Medicine, Maimonides Medical Center, Brooklyn, New York.
• J Emerg Med. 2020 May 1; 58 (5): 725-732.

BackgroundIbuprofen (Motrin; Johnson & Johnson) and acetaminophen (APAP, paracetamol) are the most commonly used analgesics in the pediatric emergency department (ED) for managing a variety of acute traumatic and nontraumatic painful conditions. The multimodal pain management of using a combination of ibuprofen plus acetaminophen has the potential to result in greater analgesia.ObjectiveWe compared the analgesic efficacy of a combination of oral ibuprofen plus acetaminophen with either analgesic alone for pediatric ED patients with acute pain.MethodsWe performed a randomized, double-blind superiority trial assessing and comparing the analgesic efficacy of a combination of oral ibuprofen (10 mg/kg dose) plus acetaminophen (15 mg/kg per dose) to either analgesic alone for the treatment of acute traumatic and nontraumatic pain in the pediatric ED. Primary outcomes included a difference in pain scores among the three groups at 60 min.ResultsWe enrolled 90 patients (30 per group). The difference in mean pain scores at 60 min between acetaminophen and combination groups was 0.30 (95% confidence interval [CI] -0.84 to 1.83); between ibuprofen and combination groups was -0.33 (95% CI -1.47 to 0.80); and between acetaminophen and ibuprofen groups was 0.63 (95% CI -0.54 to 1.81). Reductions in pain scores from baseline to 60 min were similar for all patients in each of the three groups. No adverse events occurred in any group.ConclusionsWe found similar analgesic efficacy of oral ibuprofen and acetaminophen in comparison with each analgesic alone for short-term treatment of acute pain in the pediatric ED, but the trial was underpowered to demonstrate the analgesic superiority of the combination of oral ibuprofen plus acetaminophen in comparison with each analgesic alone.Copyright © 2020 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

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