Articles: analgesia.
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Clin. Orthop. Relat. Res. · Nov 1990
Comparative StudyThe effect of continuous epidural analgesia on postoperative pain, rehabilitation, and duration of hospitalization in total knee arthroplasty.
Efficacies of three alternate methods of postoperative analgesia were studied in 156 patients who had total knee arthroplasty (TKA). Forty-two of these patients received parenteral meperidine hydrochloride or morphine (Group 1), 58 patients received periodic epidural injections of morphine (Group 2), and 56 patients received continuous epidural infusions of bupivacaine hydrochloride and Duramorph (Group 3). The postoperative course of all patients was documented in terms of the incidence and severity of pain, range of joint motion, duration of hospitalization, and occurrence of complications. ⋯ However, the use of epidural analgesia did not reduce the incidence of complications, including nausea. Continuous infusion of epidural bupivacaine and Duramorph provided good-to-excellent control of postoperative pain after TKA. However, better analgesics are needed to reduce the high incidence of side effects associated with various treatment methods.
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Patients undergoing head and neck surgery often have significant pain because of the anatomic area involved, the nature of the surgery and trauma associated with the anesthesia and surgery, or the use of packing postoperatively. A patient-controlled analgesia (PCA) infuser is available that allows the patient to direct delivery of their own analgesia. The physician orders the narcotic analgesic dose to be given, the interval between doses, and the total amount of analgesic to be delivered over 4 hours. ⋯ This system allows the patients to initiate intravenous delivery of their narcotic analgesic, and maintain control of pain, using small incremental doses of the analgesic agent. This PCA pump has been used successfully in a number of patients undergoing various general, head and neck, and facial aesthetic procedures. The general concept of the PCA pump, guidelines for use, and contraindications are presented.
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Opioid analgesia requirements, distribution into breast milk, and influence on neonatal neurobehavior were evaluated in ten parturient-neonate pairs nursing after elective cesarean section during epidural anesthesia. Five patients received first a loading dose of intravenous meperidine after umbilical cord clamping, then patient-controlled analgesia (PCA) with intravenous meperidine, and finally meperidine tablets as needed. Five patients received morphine in the same manner. ⋯ A priori, the "alertness" and three "human orientation" outcomes of the NBAS were chosen for analysis as best measures of opioid-induced effects. On all four outcomes, neonates in the morphine group scored significantly higher (P less than 0.05) than neonates in the meperidine group. We conclude that post-cesarean delivery PCA with morphine provides equivalent maternal analgesia and overall satisfaction as that provided by PCA with meperidine, but with significantly less neurobehavioral depression among breast-fed neonates on the 3rd day of life.
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A potentially serious complication of long-term epidural catheterization in cancer patients is infection. The early signs of infection were studied in 350 patients in whom long-term epidural catheters were inserted. Three areas of the catheter track were found to be involved; exit site and superficial catheter track infection, and epidural space infection. ⋯ Catheters were replaced in 15 of the 19 treated patients who requested them after treatment with no recurrent infections. It was concluded that use of long-term epidural catheterization is associated with a definable epidural infection rate. The use of epidural opioid analgesia is an effective and safe means of obtaining pain relief for terminally ill patients when patients are monitored for possible infection and receive prompt treatment when the diagnosis is established.
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Patient-controlled analgesia (PCA) has been found to be an effective method of pain management for adults. Children are now being considered for self-administration of analgesia. With careful patient selection and preparation, nurses and children find patient-controlled analgesia to be an effective way to maintain comfort in the postoperative period.