The Journal of arthroplasty
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Sixty-six patients undergoing total knee arthroplasty were offered epidural morphine as a method of postoperative analgesia. Of the 66 patients, 50 completed the minimum protocol of 3 days in a special epidural monitoring unit and were thus available for study. In this study group, 86% stated that they obtained 75-100% relief of pain with each epidural injection. ⋯ Epidural morphine provided excellent but inconsistent postoperative pain relief. When relief was present, aggressive in-house rehabilitation could be instituted, and a shorter overall hospital stay was achieved when compared with conventional analgesia. Nonetheless, the related adverse effects and inconsistent pain relief on many patients may preclude the use of epidural morphine as a single postoperative analgesic agent.