Results need to be validated in a larger cohort and for other types of surgery, but use of the simple PSQ may help to identify patients at risk of intense acute postoperative pain.
We studied known risk factors for persistent pain in patients scheduled for breast cancer surgery and constructed a preoperative risk score simple enough to select high-risk patients in future prevention studies.
(Eur J Anaesthesiol. 2019;36:575–582)
Pain management within the first 36 hours after cesarean section can have significant impact on postoperative maternal health and satisfaction. Inadequate pain relief may be associated with delayed breastfeeding and increased risk of postoperative complications. In addition, persistent pain at the 2-week postpartum mark is a risk factor for ongoing pain at 3 months postpartum as well as postpartum depression. Anesthesiologists often administer intrathecal morphine (ITM) during spinal anesthesia to manage postcesarean pain, but this approach often results in side effects such as postoperative nausea and vomiting (PONV) and pruritus; these adverse effects can considerably reduce maternal satisfaction. The current investigators conducted this study to determine if a transversus abdominis plane (TAP) block that included both local anesthetic and clonidine was a better pain management treatment compared with ITM in terms of PONV occurrence, other adverse effects, analgesic efficacy, and postoperative recovery quality.
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