British medical journal
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British medical journal · Aug 1980
Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative Study Clinical TrialRespiratory effects of analgesia after cholecystectomy: comparison of continuous and intermittent papaveretum.
Two methods of administering papaveretum for relieving postoperative pain were compared in two groups of patients who had undergone cholecystectomy. In one group a loading dose of papaveretum was administered by continuous intravenous infusion (1 mg/min) until the patient could breathe deeply without undue pain. ⋯ The intravenous regimen relieved pain better than the intramuscular regimen, which may have reflected the larger dose of papaveretum given to the intravenous group, but it was accompanied by a greater degree of respiratory depression and potentially life-threatening changes in respiratory pattern. These findings suggest that the fear which often accounts for inadequate postoperative pain relief-that larger dose of analgesics will cause respiratory complications-is well founded.