Otolaryngology--head and neck surgery : official journal of American Academy of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery
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Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg · Oct 2007
Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative StudyPost-tonsillectomy pain management in children: can we do better?
The search for an effective post-tonsillectomy analgesic has been disappointing. This study tests the hypothesis that rofecoxib improves pain scores in children for 72 hours post-tonsillectomy when compared to hydrocodone with acetaminophen elixir. ⋯ Rofecoxib significantly reduced active pain scores at all time intervals after 6 hours following surgery when compared to hydrocodone with acetaminophen without detectable differences in adverse effects. This difference was not apparent in passive pain scores. A review of analgesic strategies is presented. Study results and review of the literature support the development of pediatric formulations of NSAIDs with greater COX-2 selectivity to improve postsurgical pain relief for children.