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NSAIDs in the Treatment of Postoperative Pain

  • Other Pain (N Vadivelu and A Kaye, Section Editors)
  • Published:
Current Pain and Headache Reports Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Purpose of Review

Postoperative pain results in multiple undesirable physiologic and psychological outcomes, and it should be managed in a multimodal approach. This article reviews the latest scientific literature of NSAIDs in the treatment of postoperative pain. The goal is to answer the following questions: (1) Are NSAIDs effective in the postoperative period? (2) Are NSAIDs safe in all surgical patients? and (3) Are adverse effects of NSAIDs increased or diminished in the acute postoperative period?

Recent Findings

NSAIDs are safe and effective in the treatment of postoperative pain, and they should be administered to all postoperative surgical patients unless contraindicated.

Summary

Based on literature, NSAIDs have been shown to increase patient satisfaction and decrease opioid requirements, minimizing opiate-induced adverse events. They have no increased incidence of adverse effects during the acute postoperative period. NSAIDs and COX-2 inhibitors, however, should be used with caution in colorectal surgery as they are proven to increase the risk of anastomotic leak.

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Papers of particular interest, published recently, have been highlighted as: • Of importance •• Of major importance

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Anesthesiology and Pain Medicine, Drexel University College of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA, USA

    Anita Gupta & Maimouna Bah

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  1. Anita Gupta
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  2. Maimouna Bah
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Correspondence to Anita Gupta.

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Anita Gupta and Maimouna Bah declare that they have no conflict of interest.

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This article is part of the Topical Collection on Other Pain

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Gupta, A., Bah, M. NSAIDs in the Treatment of Postoperative Pain. Curr Pain Headache Rep 20, 62 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11916-016-0591-7

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