Anaesthesia
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Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative Study Clinical Trial
Comparison of intramuscular ketorolac and morphine in pain control after laparotomy.
Ketorolac, a prostaglandin synthetase-inhibiting analgesic, was compared with morphine for relief of pain after laparotomy for gynaecological surgery. Eighty patients were studied; they were given either ketorolac 30 mg intramuscularly followed by 10 mg 4-hourly as required, or morphine 10 mg intramuscularly 4-hourly as required, administered in a double-blind, randomised fashion. Pain scores (verbal and visual analogue) were recorded at baseline and assessed at 30 and 60 minutes and then hourly for 6 hours. ⋯ A considerable number of patients suffered postoperative nausea and vomiting but there was no difference between the groups. One patient in the ketorolac group had unexplained hypotension. It is concluded that ketorolac can provide effective postoperative analgesia.