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| Post Operative Pain Control |
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Methods Of Pain Control
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| There are different types of drugs to control pain
after surgery. Talk to your doctor and nurse before the surgery to
choose a suitable type of treatment that will best relieve your pain
after surgery. Pain medicine can be taken as a tablet (pill), injected
into the muscles, or given through a small tube in your vein (intravenous
catheter)/ back (epidural catheter). |
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| Types of Pain Relief Medicines |
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Non-Steroidal Anti-inflammatory
Drugs (NSAIDs)
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These drugs
reduce swelling and soreness and relieve mild to moderate
pain. |
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Examples are aspirin and
naproxen. |
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Opioids
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These drugs
relieve moderate to severe pain. |
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Examples are morphine,
codeine and pethidine. |
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Local anaesthetics
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These drugs
block the nerves that transmit pain and are used to relieve
severe pain. |
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They are given either near
your operation site or through a small tube in your back
(epidural catheter). |
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Some common drugs used
are bupivacaine and ropivacaine. |
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| Methods for intake of pain relief medicines |
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Oral medicines (tablet/capsule)
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These are medicines taken by
mouth. |
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Common medicines used are paracetamol,
naproxen and tramadol. |
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Advantages
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Tablets work just
as well as injections. |
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They are cheaper
than injections. |
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Easy to use and can
be taken at home. |
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Injections into muscles
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These are medicines given
via an injection into the muscles (intramuscularly) of
your upper arm, thigh or buttock. |
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Common medicine used is Pethidine for
relief of moderate to severe pain. |
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Advantages
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This
method is simple to administer. |
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Effective even if
you feel nauseous or are vomiting. |
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Can be used even
if you cannot take anything by mouth. |
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Disadvantages
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The injection
site is painful for a short while. |
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This method is more
expensive than oral medication. |
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Injections into
a vein
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These medicines
are given through a small tube (intravenous catheter)
in your vein. |
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Morphine is commonly used
to treat moderate to severe pain via this route. |
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Advantages
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This
method allows the medicine to be fully absorbed
and act quickly. |
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The medicine can
be administered continuously with the use of a syringe
pump or a Patient-Controlled Analgesia (PCA) pump. |
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If PCA is used, you
can control the amount of your pain medicine and
level of comfort. |
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Disadvantages
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A small
tube must be inserted into your vein (intravenous
catheter). |
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Injections into
the back (spine)
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These medicines
can be given through a small tube in your back (epidural
catheter). The catheter is taped on your back. |
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Common medicines used are
opioids (morphine or fentanyl) and local anaesthetics
(bupivacaine or ropivacaine). These pain medicines block
the nerves that transmit pain signals to your brain. |
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Advantages
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This
method works well when you have chest surgery or
an operation of the abdomen or lower limbs. |
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It allows you to
breathe deeply, cough and move around with minimal
pain. |
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Disadvantages
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Specially
trained staff must be available to place the tube
in your back. |
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You may have weakness
and numbness of the lower limbs while on the medications. |
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Extra cost is involved. |
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