Acute care
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Intraspinal epidural or intrathecal injection of opiates can provide outstanding analgesia in obstetric patients. Epidural and intrathecal opiates may afford more prolonged analgesia without interference of neuromuscular function or depression of the sympathetic nervous system that can occur with other anesthetic regimens. However, certain precautions are recommended to minimize potential side effects.
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Patient-controlled analgesia (PCA) has been studied extensively for the treatment of postoperative pain using narcotic analgesics. Butorphanol, a nonnarcotic injectable analgesic, has not previously been investigated using this drug delivery mechanism. ⋯ Most patients (84%) were able to obtain excellent postoperative pain relief. The role of butorphanol in the management of postoperative pain should be expanded to include patient-controlled drug delivery.