The effect of IV dexamethasone versus local anesthetic infiltration technique in postoperative nausea and vomiting after tonsillectomy in children: A randomized double-blind clinical trial

Comparison of high-versus low-dose corticosteroid administration on post-tonsillectomy outcomes

OBJECTIVE

Intraoperative steroids have been shown to decrease post-tonsillectomy morbidity; however, optimal dosing of corticosteroids is unknown. This study evaluates the effects of high-versus low-dose dexemethasone administration (0.5 mg/kg vs. 0.1 mg/kg) on post-tonsillectomy outcomes.

STUDY DESIGN

Nonrandomized controlled study.

SETTING

Academic Medical Center.

METHODS

Pediatric patients undergoing tonsillectomy at the University of Michigan between 2017 and 2018 were identified. Uncomplicated patients between 1 and 18 years who received dexamethasone during their operation were included. Patients were categorized by high- or low-dose dexamethasone administration and outcomes assessed included revisits within 30 days for pain, vomiting/dehydration, and post-operative bleeding. The number of postoperative phone calls was also assessed.

RESULTS

A total of 1641 patients were included in the study. No significant differences in steroid group outcomes were observed regarding vomiting (1.65% vs 1.7%, p = 0.618), bleeding (1.09% vs 1.3%, p = 0.579), pain (1.64% vs 0.62%, p = 0.141), other morbidities (3.83% vs 3.57%, p = 0.493) or post-operative phone calls (10.6% vs 9.9%, p = 0.81). Post-tonsillectomy bleeding was higher for infectious etiology versus sleep disordered breathing (p = 0.005); however, no rate differences for vomiting or pain were noted. Controlling for indication, no differences in hospital return rates were seen between steroid groups.

CONCLUSIONS

No statistically significant differences in post-tonsillectomy outcome measures were observed based on administration of either high- or low-dose dexamethasone. With no observed outcome differences related to steroid dosing, we transitioned to routine use of low-dose dexamethasone for tonsillectomy and adenoidectomy.

[Postoperative nausea and vomiting-recommendations for its prevention and therapy in paediatric medicine]

Post-operative nausea and/or vomiting (PONV/POV) are among the biggest problems occurring in the paediatric recovery room and in the course of the following post-operative period. Apart from pain and emergence delirium, PONV is one of the main causes of post-operative discomfort in children. The DGAI Scientific Working Group on Paediatric Anaesthesia already worked out recommendations for the prevention and treatment of PONV in children years ago. These recommendations have now been revised by a team of experts, the current literature has been reviewed, and evidence-based core recommendations have been consented. Key elements of the new recommendations consist of effective individual measures for prevention and therapy, next to the implementation of a fixed dual prophylaxis in the clinical routine applicable to all children ≥ 3 years of age.

Comparing the Effects of Pregabalin and Clonidine on Postoperative Pain in Tonsillectomy: A Randomized, Double-Blind, Prospective Clinical Trial

BACKGROUND

Tonsillectomy is one of the most common surgical procedures. This study compared the effect of Pregabalin and Clonidine on postoperative pain in adult patients undergoing elective tonsillectomy.

METHODS

This randomized, double-blind, prospective clinical trial was conducted among 92 patients aged 20 to 50. The clonidine group (C) was given 150 µg of clonidine tablet 90 minutes before surgery, and the pregabalin group (P) was given 300 mg of pregabalin tablet 90 minutes before surgery. The results were analyzed by SPSS 25, and statistical analysis consisted of chisquare, T-test, and χ2 tests, and a p-value less than 0.05 was considered significant.

RESULTS

The mean pain score and analgesic consumption scores in the pregabalin group were lower than in the clonidine group. According to the t-test, there was a significant difference between the two groups regarding pain score and analgesic consumption (p <0.05). Hemodynamic variation in both groups had no significant differences (p >0.05).

CONCLUSION

The present study showed that pregabalin reduced postoperative pain and analgesic consumption more effectively than clonidine.

Postoperative Nausea and Vomiting in Pediatric Patients

Postoperative nausea and vomiting (PONV), postoperative vomiting (POV), post-discharge nausea and vomiting (PDNV), and opioid-induced nausea and vomiting (OINV) continue to be causes of pediatric morbidity, delay in discharge, and unplanned hospital admission. Research on the pathophysiology, risk assessment, and therapy for PDNV, OINV and pain therapy options in children has received increased attention. Multimodal pain management with the use of perioperative regional and opioid-sparing analgesia has helped decrease nausea and vomiting. Two common emetogenic surgical procedures in children are adenotonsillectomy and strabismus repair. Although PONV risk factors differ between adults and children, the approach to decrease baseline risk is similar. As PONV and POV are frequent in children, antiemetic prophylaxis should be considered for those at risk. A multimodal approach for antiemetic and pain therapy involves preoperative risk evaluation and stratification, antiemetic prophylaxis, and pain management with opioid-sparing medications and regional anesthesia. Useful antiemetics include dexamethasone and serotonin 5-hydroxytryptamine-3 (5-HT3) receptor antagonists such as ondansetron. Multimodal combination prophylactic therapy using two or three antiemetics from different drug classes and propofol total intravenous anesthesia should be considered for children at high PONV risk. "Enhanced recovery after surgery" protocols include a multimodal approach with preoperative preparation, adequate intravenous fluid hydration, opioid-sparing analgesia, and prophylactic antiemetics. PONV guidelines and management algorithms help provide effective postoperative care for pediatric patients.

#10-Year Challenge: Local anaesthetic for post-tonsillectomy pain: Update meta-analysis

INTRODUCTION

Adequate management of post-tonsillectomy pain is an important consideration in postoperative management after tonsillectomy. A 2008 meta-analysis showed that the use of local anaesthetic either by infiltration or topical application reduced postoperative pain.

OBJECTIVES

To review the current evidence for the use of local anaesthetic as a means of reducing post-tonsillectomy pain and compare current evidence to the previous meta-analysis 10 years ago.

METHOD

Systematic literature searches of MEDLINE [*"ANESTHETICS, LOCAL"/ AND *TONSILLECTOMY/], EMBASE [*"LOCAL ANESTHETIC AGENT"/ AND *TONSILLECTOMY/] and PubMed [(Tonsillectomy).ti,ab AND (Local Anaesthetic).ti,ab OR (Local Anesthetic).ti,ab]. A meta-analysis of randomised control trials assessing the use of local anaesthetic agents for post-tonsillectomy pain.

RESULTS

Twenty-three studies were included in the meta-analysis. Overall, local anaesthetic, applied topically or infiltrated, significantly reduces pain scores compared with controls at 4-6 hours [-0.65 (95% CI: -0.77; -0.53)]; 24 hours [-0.50 (95% CI: -0.66, -0.35)]; and 5-7 days [-0.78 (95% CI: -0.90, -0.65)] (standardised mean differences).

CONCLUSION

Current studies suggest that use of peri-operative local anaesthetic during tonsillectomy does improve postoperative pain outcomes. The limitations of the analysis are as follows: all studies are small, and a multi-centred larger trial is recommended to guarantee statistical reliability. There was no description of significant adverse side effects from local anaesthetic use.

Postoperative Nausea and Vomiting in Paediatric Anaesthesia

Postoperative nausea and vomiting (PONV) is a common complication in paediatric anaesthesia and is a source of significant morbidity. Various independent risk factors have been implicated in the development of paediatric PONV, including higher pain scores postoperatively, the use of opioids for pain management and the use of volatile anaesthetics for the maintenance of anaesthesia. This review of the current literature regarding the prevention and treatment of paediatric PONV is based on a search of the PubMed database, which identified published clinical trials, systematic reviews and meta-analyses. While the occurrence of PONV in many cases is difficult to avoid entirely, the risk can be mitigated by the use of multimodal nonopioid analgesic regimens, total intravenous drugs in favour of volatile anaesthetics and an appropriate regimen of prophylactic pharmacotherapy. Frequently administered drug classes for the prevention of PONV include corticosteroids, 5HT3 antagonists and anticholinergics. The clinical use of the findings in the literature may help to reduce the occurrence of PONV in children. In this review, we provide comprehensive and updated information on the risk factors contributing the occurrence of PONV in children, outline the current opinion on the drugs that are commonly used for management and provide an overview of the guidelines that are used to help establish the prophylaxis and treatment of paediatric PONV.

Pre-emptive scalp infiltration with dexamethasone plus ropivacaine for postoperative pain after craniotomy: a protocol for a prospective, randomized controlled trial

Background: Approximately 55–87% of the patients undergoing craniotomy experience moderate to severe pain during the first 48 hrs after surgery, which negatively influences patients’ postoperative rehabilitation. Recently, local infiltration of analgesia (LIA) has been widely performed clinically as a promising analgesic method that could avoid the side effects of analgesics but only has a short pain-free duration; researchers have clarified that the addition of dexamethasone to LIA could provide significant analgesic effects and significantly prolong the duration of analgesic effects without obvious complications for various types of surgeries. To date, no studies have evaluated the addition of dexamethasone to LIA for patients receiving craniotomy. The aim of the study was to test the hypothesis that pre-emptive scalp infiltration with a steroid (dexamethasone) plus a local anesthetic (ropivacaine) could achieve superior postoperative analgesic effects to a local anesthetic (ropivacaine) alone in adult patients undergoing a craniotomy.

Study design and methods: This study is a randomized controlled trial that will include one intervention and one control group involving a total of 140 adults scheduled for elective craniotomy for resection of supratentorial tumors under general anesthesia and with an anticipated full recovery within 2 hrs postoperatively. The intervention will involve pre-emptive scalp infiltration with ropivacaine plus dexamethasone (the dexamethasone group) or ropivacaine alone (the control group), and the participants in both groups will complete a 6-month follow-up. The primary outcome will be the cumulative sufentanil consumption within 48 hrs postoperatively.

Discussion: The intervention, if effective, this study will provide clinically important information on the role of dexamethasone in scalp infiltration for post-craniotomy pain management.

The efficiency and safety of dexamethasone for pain control in total joint arthroplasty: A meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials

BACKGROUND

This meta-analysis aimed to evaluate the efficiency and safety of dexamethasone administration in total knee and hip arthroplasties.

METHODS

Two researchers search the relevant studies independently including Embase (1980-017.04), PubMed (1966-017.04), ScienceDirect (1985-017.04), Web of Science (1950-2017.03), and Cochrane Library for potential relevant studies. After testing for heterogeneity between studies, data were aggregated for random-effects models when necessary. The results of dichotomous outcomes were expressed as risk difference (RD) with a 95% confidence intervals (CIs). For continuous various outcomes, mean difference (MD) or standard mean difference (SMD) with a 95% confidence intervals (CIs) was applied for assessment. Meta-analysis was performed using Stata 11.0 software.

RESULTS

Four randomized controlled trials (RCTs) including 361 patients met the inclusion criteria. The present meta-analysis indicated that there were significant differences between groups in terms of visual analogue scale (VAS) score at 12 hours (SMD = -0.579, 95% CI: -0.780 to -0.357, P = .000), 24 hours (SMD = -0.820, 95% CI: -1.036 to -0.604, P = .000), and 48 hours (SMD = -0.661, 95% CI: -1.149 to -0.172, P = .008). Dexamethasone was associated with a lower opioid consumption at 12 hours (SMD = -0.245, 95% CI: -0.465 to -0.025, P = .029), 24 hours (SMD = -0.285, 95% CI: -0.505 to -0.064, P = .011), and 48 hours (SMD = -0.989, 95% CI: -1.710 to -0.267, P = .007).

CONCLUSION

Dexamethasone could significantly reduce postoperative pain scores and opioid consumption within the 1st 48 hours following total joint arthroplasty (TJA). The overall evidence quality was moderate to low, further high-quality RCTs are needed to identify the optimal dose of dexamethasone for reducing pain after TJA.