scholarly journals Pain Intensity on the First Day after Surgery

2013 ◽  
Vol 118 (4) ◽  
pp. 934-944 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hans J. Gerbershagen ◽  
Sanjay Aduckathil ◽  
Albert J. M. van Wijck ◽  
Linda M. Peelen ◽  
Cor J. Kalkman ◽  
...  

Abstract Background: Severe pain after surgery remains a major problem, occurring in 20–40% of patients. Despite numerous published studies, the degree of pain following many types of surgery in everyday clinical practice is unknown. To improve postoperative pain therapy and develop procedure-specific, optimized pain-treatment protocols, types of surgery that may result in severe postoperative pain in everyday practice must first be identified. Methods: This study considered 115,775 patients from 578 surgical wards in 105 German hospitals. A total of 70,764 patients met the inclusion criteria. On the first postoperative day, patients were asked to rate their worst pain intensity since surgery (numeric rating scale, 0–10). All surgical procedures were assigned to 529 well-defined groups. When a group contained fewer than 20 patients, the data were excluded from analysis. Finally, 50,523 patients from 179 surgical groups were compared. Results: The 40 procedures with the highest pain scores (median numeric rating scale, 6–7) included 22 orthopedic/trauma procedures on the extremities. Patients reported high pain scores after many “minor” surgical procedures, including appendectomy, cholecystectomy, hemorrhoidectomy, and tonsillectomy, which ranked among the 25 procedures with highest pain intensities. A number of “major” abdominal surgeries resulted in comparatively low pain scores, often because of sufficient epidural analgesia. Conclusions: Several common minor- to medium-level surgical procedures, including some with laparoscopic approaches, resulted in unexpectedly high levels of postoperative pain. To reduce the number of patients suffering from severe pain, patients undergoing so-called minor surgery should be monitored more closely, and postsurgical pain treatment needs to comply with existing procedure-specific pain-treatment recommendations.

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jacqueline F. M. van Dijk ◽  
Ruth Zaslansky ◽  
Regina L. M. van Boekel ◽  
Juanita M. Cheuk-Alam ◽  
Sara J. Baart ◽  
...  

Background As the population ages, the number of elderly people undergoing surgery increases. Literature on the incidence and intensity of postoperative pain in the elderly is conflicting. This study examines associations between age and pain-related patient reported outcomes and perioperative pain management in a dataset of surgical patients undergoing four common surgeries: spinal surgery, hip or knee replacement, or laparoscopic cholecystectomy. Based on the authors’ clinical experience, they hypothesize that pain scores are lower in older patients. Methods In this retrospective cohort, study data were collected between 2010 and 2018 as part of the international PAIN OUT program. Patients filled out the International Pain Outcomes Questionnaire on postoperative day 1. Results A total of 11,510 patients from 26 countries, 59% female, with a mean age of 62 yr, underwent one of the aforementioned types of surgery. Large variation was detected within each age group for worst pain, yet for each surgical procedure, mean scores decreased significantly with age (mean Numeric Rating Scale range, 6.3 to 7.3; β = –0.2 per decade; P ≤ 0.001), representing a decrease of 1.3 Numeric Rating Scale points across a lifespan. The interference of pain with activities in bed, sleep, breathing deeply or coughing, nausea, drowsiness, anxiety, helplessness, opioid administration on the ward, and wish for more pain treatment also decreases with age for two or more of the procedures. Across the procedures, patients reported being in severe pain on postoperative day one 26 to 38% of the time, and pain interfered moderately to severely with movement. Conclusions The authors’ findings indicate that postoperative pain decreases with increasing age. The change is, however, small and of questionable clinical significance. Additionally, there are still too many patients, at any age, undergoing common surgeries who suffer from moderate to severe pain, which interferes with function, supporting the need for tailoring care to the individual patient. Editor’s Perspective What We Already Know about This Topic What This Article Tells Us That Is New


2014 ◽  
Vol 120 (5) ◽  
pp. 1237-1245 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hans J. Gerbershagen ◽  
Esther Pogatzki-Zahn ◽  
Sanjay Aduckathil ◽  
Linda M. Peelen ◽  
Teus H. Kappen ◽  
...  

Abstract Background: Many studies have analyzed risk factors for the development of severe postoperative pain with contradictory results. To date, the association of risk factors with postoperative pain intensity among different surgical procedures has not been studied and compared. Methods: The authors selected precisely defined surgical groups (at least 150 patients each) from prospectively collected perioperative data from 105 German hospitals (2004–2010). The association of age, sex, and preoperative chronic pain intensity with worst postoperative pain intensity was studied with multiple linear and logistic regression analyses. Pooled data of the selected surgeries were studied with random-effect analysis. Results: Thirty surgical procedures with a total number of 22,963 patients were compared. In each surgical procedure, preoperative chronic pain intensity and younger age were associated with higher postoperative pain intensity. A linear decline of postoperative pain with age was found. Females reported more severe pain in 21 of 23 surgeries. Analysis of pooled surgical groups indicated that postoperative pain decreased by 0.28 points (95% CI, 0.26 to 0.31) on the numeric rating scale (0 to 10) per decade age increase and postoperative pain increased by 0.14 points (95% CI, 0.13 to 0.15) for each higher score on the preoperative chronic pain scale. Females reported 0.29 points (95% CI, 0.22 to 0.37) higher pain intensity. Conclusions: Independent of the type and extent of surgery, preoperative chronic pain and younger age were associated with higher postoperative pain. Females consistently reported slightly higher pain scores regardless of the type of surgery. The clinical significance of this small sex difference has to be analyzed in future studies.


2006 ◽  
Vol 105 (4) ◽  
pp. 794-800 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pasi Lahtinen ◽  
Hannu Kokki ◽  
Markku Hynynen

Background Persistent chest pain may originate from cardiac surgery. Conflicting results have been reported on the incidence of persistent poststernotomy pain with considerable discrepancies between the retrospective reports and the one prospective study conducted to assess this pain. Therefore, the authors conducted a follow-up survey for the first 12 months after cardiac surgery in 213 patients who had a sternotomy. Methods The authors performed a prospective inquiry of acute and chronic poststernotomy pain both before and after cardiac surgery. Two hundred thirteen coronary artery bypass patients received a questionnaire preoperatively, 4 days postoperatively, and 1, 3, 6, and 12 months postoperatively. All patients were asked about their expectations, their preferences, and the location and intensity of postoperative pain. Results The return rates for the postal questionnaires were 203 (95%) and 186 (87%) after 1 and 12 months, respectively. Patients experienced more pain postoperatively at rest than they had expected to preoperatively. At rest, the worst actual postoperative pain was 6 (0-10), and the worst expected pain as assessed preoperatively was 5 (0-10) (P = 0.013). The worst reported postoperative pain was severe (numeric rating scale score 7-10) in 49% at rest, in 78% during coughing, and in 62% of patients on movement. One year after the operation, 26 patients (14%) reported mild chronic poststernotomy pain at rest, 1 patient (1%) had moderate pain, and 3 patients (2%) had severe pain. Upon movement, persistent pain was even more common: 45 patients (24%) had mild, 5 patients (3%) had moderate, and 7 patients (4%) had severe pain. Patients who experienced moderate to severe acute postoperative pain also reported any chronic poststernotomy pain (numeric rating scale score 1-10) more frequently. Conclusions Although common, the incidence of persistent pain after sternotomy was lower than previously reported. Also, reassuringly, 1 year after surgery this pain was mostly mild in nature both at rest and on movement.


Author(s):  
Yi-Hsuan Huang ◽  
Meei-Shyuan Lee ◽  
Yao-Tsung Lin ◽  
Nian-Cih Huang ◽  
Jing Kao ◽  
...  

Development of remifentanil-induced hyperalgesia (RIH) postoperatively is an unpleasant experience that requires further treatment. This study assessed the effects of gradual withdrawal combined with drip infusion of remifentanil on postoperative pain and the requirement for rescue analgesics. A total of 559 patients receiving total intravenous anesthesia with propofol and remifentanil were enrolled. All patients either underwent gradual withdrawal of remifentanil (GWR) or gradual withdrawal combined with drip infusion (GWDR) with a dose of 1 mcg·kg−1 for 30 min after extubation. The numeric rating scale (NRS) and the requirement of rescue analgesics were assessed. The requirement for rescue analgesics was significantly lower in the GWDR group than in the GWR group (13.2% vs. 35.7%; p < 0.001). At the post-anesthetic care unit (PACU), patients in the GWDR group had a lower NRS pain score (p < 0.001). In addition, in the postoperative 2nd hour, patients in the GWDR group had a significantly lower NRS than the GWR group (beta, −0.31; p = 0.003). No remifentanil-related adverse effects were observed. We found that gradual withdrawal combined with drip infusion of remifentanil required less rescue analgesics and reduced pain scores. The new way of remifentanil administration may be effective to prevent RIH.


BMJ Open ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (12) ◽  
pp. e040390
Author(s):  
Raoul Daoust ◽  
Jean Paquet ◽  
Alexis Cournoyer ◽  
Éric Piette ◽  
Judy Morris ◽  
...  

ObjectivesInadequate acute pain management can reduce the quality of life, cause unnecessary suffering and can often lead to the development of chronic pain. Using group-based trajectory modelling, we previously identified six distinct pain intensity trajectories for the first 14-day postemergency department (ED) discharge; two linear ones with moderate or severe pain during follow-up (~40% of the patients) and four cubic polynomial order trajectories with mild or no pain at the end of the 14 days (low final pain trajectories). We assessed if previously described acute pain intensity trajectories over 14 days after ED discharge are predictive of chronic pain 3 months later.DesignProspective cohort study.SettingTertiary care trauma centre academic hospital.ParticipantsThis study included 18 years and older ED patients who consulted for acute (≤2 weeks) pain conditions that were discharged with an opioid prescription. Patients completed a 14-day diary in which they listed their daily pain intensity (0–10 numeric rating scale).OutcomesThree months after ED visit, participants were questioned by phone about their current pain intensity (0–10 numeric rating scale). Chronic pain was defined as patients with current pain intensity ≥4 at 3 months.ResultsA total of 305 participants remained in the study at 3 months, 49% were women and a mean age of 55±15 years. Twelve per cent (11.9; 95% CI 8.2 to 15.4) of patients had chronic pain at the 3-month follow-up. Controlling for age, sex and pain condition, patients with moderate or severe pain trajectories and those with only a severe pain trajectory were respectively 5.1 (95% CI 2.2 to 11.8) and 8.2 (95% CI 3.4 to 20.0) times more likely to develop chronic pain 3 months later compared with patients in the low final pain trajectories.ConclusionSpecific acute pain trajectories following an ED visit are closely related to the development of chronic pain 3 months later.Trial registration numberNCT02799004; Results.


Author(s):  
Richard Pollak ◽  
Danlin Cai ◽  
Tong J. Gan

Background: There is a need for postoperative pain control that minimizes/eliminates opioid use during the first 72 hours following surgery, when pain is most severe. HTX-011 is an extended-release, dual-acting local anesthetic that demonstrated superior 72-hour analgesia over standard of care bupivacaine hydrochloride (HCl) and saline placebo in a phase 3 bunionectomy study (EPOCH-1). Having shown HTX-011 monotherapy is superior to bupivacaine HCl in reducing postoperative pain intensity and opioid use, this follow-on study evaluated the safety and efficacy of HTX-011 as the foundation of a multimodal analgesia (MMA) regimen using over-the-counter medications recommended by practice guidelines for pain management. Methods: Following regional anesthesia administered as a lidocaine block, patients underwent unilateral bunionectomy with osteotomy and internal fixation. Prior to closure, HTX-011 (up to 60 mg bupivacaine/1.8 mg meloxicam) was applied without a needle. Patients received scheduled postoperative MMA alternating ibuprofen (600 mg) and acetaminophen (1 g) every 3 hours for 72 hours. Efficacy was assessed based on pain intensity (numeric rating scale [NRS; 0-10]) and consumption of opioid rescue medication (intravenous morphine milligram equivalents [MME]). Adverse event and vital sign monitoring, plus laboratory and wound healing assessments, were used to determine safety. Results: Over the 72-hour assessment period following bunionectomy, mean pain scores were mild in severity (NRS &lt;4) and 22/31 patients (71%) experienced no severe pain (NRS {greater than or equal to}7) with HTX-011 as the foundation of scheduled, non-opioid MMA. Patients consumed an average of 1.61 MME total, with 24/31 (77%) requiring no opioid rescue medication (opioid-free). HTX-011 was well-tolerated and demonstrated no safety concerns with the inclusion of postoperative MMA. Conclusions: HTX-011 as the foundation of an MMA regimen including scheduled ibuprofen and acetaminophen maintained mean postoperative pain scores in the mild range and enabled opioid-free recovery for 77% of bunionectomy patients through the 28-day recovery period.


2021 ◽  
Vol 0 (0) ◽  
Author(s):  
Luma Mahmoud Issa ◽  
Kasper Højgaard Thybo ◽  
Daniel Hägi-Pedersen ◽  
Jørn Wetterslev ◽  
Janus Christian Jakobsen ◽  
...  

AbstractObjectivesIn this sub-study of the ‘Paracetamol and Ibuprofen in Combination’ (PANSAID) trial, in which participants were randomised to one of four different non-opioids analgesic regimen consisting of paracetamol, ibuprofen, or a combination of the two after planned primary total hip arthroplasty, our aims were to investigate the distribution of participants’ pain (mild, moderate or severe), integrate opioid use and pain to a single score (Silverman Integrated Approach (SIA)-score), and identify preoperative risk factors for severe pain.MethodsWe calculated the proportions of participants with mild (VAS 0–30 mm), moderate (VAS 31–60 mm) or severe (VAS 61–100 mm) pain and the SIA-scores (a sum of rank-based percentage differences from the mean rank in pain scores and opioid use, ranging from −200 to 200%). Using logistic regression with backwards elimination, we investigated the association between severe pain and easily obtainable preoperative patient characteristics.ResultsAmong 556 participants from the modified intention-to-treat population, 33% (95% CI: 26–42) (Group Paracetamol + Ibuprofen (PCM + IBU)), 28% (95% CI: 21–37) (Group Paracetamol (PCM)), 23% (95% CI: 17–31) (Group Ibuprofen (IBU)), and 19% (95% CI: 13–27) (Group Half Strength-Paracetamol + Ibuprofen (HS-PCM + IBU)) experienced mild pain 6 h postoperatively during mobilisation. Median SIA-scores during mobilisation were: Group PCM + IBU: −48% (IQR: −112 to 31), Group PCM: 40% (IQR: −31 to 97), Group IBU: −5% (IQR: −57 to 67), and Group HS-PCM + IBU: 6% (IQR: −70 to 74) (overall difference: p=0.0001). Use of analgesics before surgery was the only covariate associated with severe pain (non-opioid: OR 0.50, 95% CI: 0.29–0.82, weak opioid 0.56, 95% CI: 0.28–1.16, reference no analgesics before surgery, p=0.02).ConclusionsOnly one third of participants using paracetamol and ibuprofen experienced mild pain after total hip arthroplasty and even fewer experienced mild pain using each drug alone as basic non-opioid analgesic treatment. We were not able, in any clinically relevant way, to predict severe postoperative pain. A more extensive postoperative pain regimen than paracetamol, ibuprofen and opioids may be needed for a large proportion of patients having total hip arthroplasty. SIA-scores integrate pain scores and opioid use for the individual patient and may add valuable information in acute pain research.


Author(s):  
Iveta Golubovska ◽  
Aleksejs Miščuks ◽  
Ēriks Rudzītis

Abstract The aim of this study was to evaluate the intensity of pain in orthopaedic hospital patients and to identify unsatisfactory pain management and possibilities for improvements in the future. Data collection included Numeric Rating Scale (NRS) scores, which characterised the intensity of pain. Maximum pain on the day of surgery, mean pain on the day of surgery (D0), and mean pain on first (D1) and second (D2) postoperative days were documented. The pain of an intensity from 0 to 3 was defined as mild pain, 4 to 6 as moderate pain, and 6 to 10 as severe pain. Maximum severe pain intensity on the day of surgery was experienced by 20.5% of patients, moderate by 45.8%, and mild by 33.6%. The reported mean pain intensity according to type of surgery was as follows: hip replacement- 2.79 ± 1.6 (D0), 2.09 ± 1.4 (D1), and 1.35 ± 1.2 (D2); knee replacement - 3.39 ± 1.7 (D0), 2.98 ± (D1), 1.82 ± 1.36, and (D2); upper extremity surgery - 3.59 ± 1.9 (D0), 3.4 ± 1.7 (D1), and 2.1 ± 1.5 (D2); lower extremity surgery - 4.1 ± 2.1 (D0), 3.49 ± 1.42 (D1), and 2.58 ± 1.4 (D2); spine surgery - 3.31 ± 1.58 (D0), 2.88 ± 1.96 (D1), and 1.83 ± 1.74 (D2). Patients in the lower extremity group experienced unacceptable mean pain. The maximum pain intensity on day of surgery was experienced by patients after single-shot plexus brachialis block anaesthesia (5.24 ± 2.4). Well-designed multimodal analgesia with special attention to single shot techniques may improve pain management and functional outcomes after orthopaedic surgery.


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