American journal of perinatology
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Randomized Controlled Trial
Intravenous Acetaminophen versus Morphine for Analgesia in Labor: A Randomized Trial.
Objective To compare the effectiveness of intravenous acetaminophen with that of morphine in reducing pain in the first stage of labor. Methods An open-label, randomized controlled trial of women ≥ 34 weeks gestation in the first stage of labor, assigned to either intravenous acetaminophen or morphine. The primary outcome was improved analgesia measured by difference of visual analog scale (VAS) score at 120 minutes from baseline. ⋯ Maternal and fetal side effects were similar between groups. Conclusion There was no difference in VAS scores between groups. However, as half of women receiving intravenous acetaminophen required rescue analgesia within 120 minutes of treatment, intravenous acetaminophen may be less effective for analgesia in early labor compared with intravenous morphine.