Patients undergoing major spinal surgery continue to experience moderate-to-severe pain
during the first 2-3 days following the operative procedure. Pain complicates the recovery
process, despite the routine practice of using potent opioid analgesics. The primary reason
that pain is poorly controlled in patients undergoing major surgery is that most
commonly-used opioids only produce analgesia for 2-4 hours. The intermittent use of these
drugs results in periods of time when a patient will experience discomfort (at which time a
nurse administers more drug or the button on a patient-controlled analgesic (PCA) system is
pressed to deliver more medication). The use of a long-acting opioid may be advantageous in
the perioperative setting. Methadone is an opioid that has a median duration of analgesia of
24-36 hours. Therefore, a single dose administered in the operating room may reduce the need
for pain medication and improve pain control for the first few postoperative days. The aim of
this randomized clinical trial is to examine the effect of methadone (compared to
hydromorphone) on postoperative pain management in patients undergoing major spine surgery
Phase:
Phase 4
Details
Lead Sponsor:
NorthShore University HealthSystem NorthShore University HealthSystem Research Institute