Efficacy of Ketorolac, Paracetamol, and Tramadol for post-operative pain: A comparative study

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Created On: 18/09/2023

The objective of a prospective, randomized study was to assess the effectiveness, safety, and post-operative pain relief effect of Ketorolac, Paracetamol, and Tramadol in patients undergoing surgery.

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Key take away

In general and orthopedic surgeries, post-operative administration of Ketorolac provides better analgesic effectiveness compared to Paracetamol and Tramadol, offering a prolonged duration of pain relief and reducing the need for additional rescue analgesics.

Background

The objective of a prospective, randomized study was to assess the effectiveness, safety, and post-operative pain relief effect of Ketorolac, Paracetamol, and Tramadol in patients undergoing surgery.

Method

A total of 120 volunteers, ranging in age from 12 to 75 years, undergoing orthopedic and general surgeries were enrolled in the study. In this comparative, observational study, the patients were divided into 3 groups: Group 1 received 30 mg of intramuscular Ketorolac, group 2 received 1 g of intravenous Paracetamol, and group 3 received 100 mg of intravenous Tramadol.

Using the chi-square test, recording and statistical assessment of various parameters, including duration of post-surgery analgesia, pain score, pain onset time, pain-free interval, hemodynamic parameters, median time to rescue analgesic, and occurrence of side effects were done.

Result

In group 1, 87.5% (n=35) of patients experienced pain within 0 to 6 hours, while 12.5% (n=5) experienced pain within 6 to 12 hours. Similarly, in group 2, 82.5% (n=33) of patients had pain onset within 0 to 6 hours, with 10% (n=4) experiencing pain within 6 to 12 hours. In group 3, 82.5% (n=33)of patients experienced pain within 0 to 6 hours, 15% (n=6) within 6 to 12 hours, and 1 patient within 18 to 24 hours, as shown in Graph 1:

The chi-square test statistic value was calculated to be 8.479, indicating that the observed differences were not statistically significant.

Conclusion

For post-operative pain relief in general and orthopedic surgeries, Ketorolac was found to be a superior analgesic in comparison with Paracetamol and Tramadol.