Effect of Intrathecal Morphine on Chronic Pain After Elective Caesarean Section

Summary

The incidence of chronic post-surgical pain (CPSP) after caesarean section (CS) is reported to be as high as 18%, reflecting it to be a significant clinical problem. Studies related to prevention of progression of acute post-CS pain to its chronicity are sparse. Current guidelines on post-CS analgesia recommend the use of intrathecal (IT) opioids to spinal anaesthesia for improved post-CS pain relief. Despite its frequent use, studies related to the IT morphine use and its association with post-CS chronic pain are lacking. A recent prospective observation study revealed a significant reduction in persistent pain after CS when IT morphine was used as an adjuvant to spinal anaesthesia. However, there is no any randomized controlled trial (RCT) that has explored this association to date. We hypothesized that spinal morphine would reduce the incidence of persistent pain after CS.

Timeline

Start

2018-04-01

Primary completion

2020-12-26

Completion

2021-03-30

Publications

• Subedi A, Schyns-van den Berg AMJV, Thapa P, Limbu PM, Trikhatri Y, Poudel A, Dhakal Y, Bhandari S. Intrathecal morphine does not prevent chronic postsurgical pain after elective Caesarean delivery: a randomised controlled trial. Br J Anaesth. 2022 Apr;128(4):700-707. doi: 10.1016/j.bja.2021.11.036. Epub 2022 Jan 26.

Drugs

Indications