Over-the-counter oral analgesia for postcesarean pain.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to evaluate patient satisfaction for oral analgesia for postcesarean pain management.

Study Design: A prospective study was conducted on women who underwent cesarean section with regional analgesia. Women were treated with ibuprofen 400 mg in liquid-filled capsules on the first postoperative day by two modes of drug administration: on patient demand (n = 60) and at predetermined regular intervals (n = 54). Pain intensity and satisfaction were self-evaluated by the patients with use of a visual analog scale.

Results: Patients in the fixed time interval group had lower pain scores (by 38%-54%, P <.001) compared with the on-demand group. Satisfaction scores in both groups were high but superior in the fixed time interval group (87.5 +/- 18.8, median 94.5, vs 78.6 +/- 21, median 85, P <.001).

Conclusions: Oral, nonnarcotic, postcesarean analgesia provides satisfactory pain relief. Patient satisfaction can be further enhanced by providing the medications in fixed time intervals rather than leaving it to patient request.