Kaohsiung J Med Sci
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Kaohsiung J Med Sci · Sep 2003
Randomized Controlled Trial Clinical TrialRopivacane 0.1 % with or without fentanyl for epidural postoperative analgesia: a randomized, double-blind comparison.
Epidural analgesia is often considered optimal postoperative analgesia for certain surgical procedures. Ropivacaine is a new local anesthetic that is less toxic than its homologue, bupivacaine. Epidural infusions usually comprise a local anesthetic, an opioid, or a combination of the two to improve analgesic efficacy and reduce unwanted side effects. ⋯ However, pain relief was significantly better in the ropivacaine/fentanyl group after the first hour and this difference lasted for the remaining time. There was no significant difference in adverse events between the two groups during 24 hours of assessment. In conclusion, the quality of analgesia was significantly improved by the addition of fentanyl 1 microg/mL to ropivacaine.