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ANALGESIA

A Comparative Study of the Analgesic Effect of Patient-Controlled Morphine, Pethidine, and Tramadol for Postoperative Pain Management After Abdominal Hysterectomy

Hakki Unlugenc, MD^*, Mehmet Ali Vardar, MD, and Sibel Tetiker, MD^*

From the Departments of *Anaesthesiology, and Gynecology and Obstetric, Cukurova University Faculty of Medicine, Adana, Turkey.

Address correspondence and reprint requests to Dr. Hakki Unlugenc, Department of Anaesthesiology, Cukurova University Faculty of Medicine, 01330 Adana, Turkey. Address e-mail to unlugenc{at}cu.edu.tr.

Abstract

We designed this prospective, randomized, double-blind study to compare the analgesic effectiveness and side effects of IV patient-controlled morphine, pethidine, and tramadol for postoperative pain management. One-hundred-twenty-six ASA physical status I or II patients undergoing abdominal hysterectomy were randomly allocated to receive IV-patient controlled morphine (M), pethidine (P), or tramadol (T) for postoperative analgesia. The cumulative analgesic consumption over 24 h was 25.7 ± 9.5 mg for morphine, 266 ± 90 mg for pethidine, and 320 ± 10 mg for tramadol. The average supplementary fentanyl dose used was significantly higher in group T than in groups M and P (P < 0.05). In conclusion, morphine, pethidine, and tramadol resulted in equivalent pain scores and side effects, but tramadol group T required more rescue analgesic doses of fentanyl.