Epidural analgesia is often considered cornerstone in multimodal analgesia when used in major surgeries. However, its role in managing acute postoperative pain in elderly patients is debatable because of its known potential complications. Furthermore, postoperative pain in elderly patients is under-treated because of complex comorbidities, and they are more prone to adverse events related to pain therapies. All systemic analgesic drugs have pharmacological limitations and precautions in elderly people. Recent meta-analyses showed that epidural analgesia provided better postoperative pain control compared to intravenous opioids. Interestingly, peripheral nerve blocks had no superior control of pain over epidural analgesia. In addition, epidural analgesia has shown to positively affect perioperative morbidities and mortalities, and reduce opioid-related side effects because of its non-analgesic effects on each organ system. When tailored in a specific multimodal approach, it shortens the intensive care and hospital stays. In conclusion, if complications are identified and treated early, and contraindications are ruled out, epidural analgesia can achieve sufficient postoperative pain management with insignificant adverse events in this population.

Download full-text PDF

Source
http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/17504589221135368DOI Listing

Publication Analysis

Top Keywords

epidural analgesia
24
postoperative pain
20
acute postoperative
8
pain elderly
8
elderly patients
8
adverse events
8
pain
7
epidural
6
analgesia
6
postoperative
5

Similar Publications

Lumbar epidural anesthesia is widely used for labor epidural analgesia (LEA), but it often results in insufficient analgesia in the sacral region. We report a case where we performed LEA using lumbar epidural anesthesia, and an asymptomatic sacral perineural cyst was considered the potential cause of inadequate analgesia in the sacral region. A 33-year-old primigravida was admitted with premature rupture of membranes.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Development and validation of a prediction model for intrapartum fever related to chorioamnionitis in parturients undergoing epidural analgesia.

Sci Rep

December 2024

Department of Anesthesiology, Sichuan Women's and Children's Hospital/Women's and Children's Hospital, Chengdu Medical College, Chengdu, 610000, China.

Intrapartum fever is a common complication in parturients undergoing epidural analgesia (EA), significantly increasing the incidence of maternal and infant complications. This study aims to develop and validate a prediction model for intrapartum fever related to chorioamnionitis (IFTC) in parturients undergoing epidural analgesia. A total of 596 parturients with fever (axillary temperature ≥ 38℃) who received EA from January 2020 to December 2023 were included and randomly assigned to the training set (N = 417) and the validation set (N = 179) according to the ratio of 7:3.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Lung cancer surgery is associated with a high incidence of chronic postsurgical pain (CPSP), which necessitates long-term analgesic prescriptions. However, while essential for managing pain, these have shown various adverse effects. Current guidelines recommend using peripheral nerve blocks over epidural anaesthesia for perioperative analgesia in minimally invasive thoracic surgery (MITS).

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Maternal positions in childbirth - A cohort study of labouring women's movements and body positions the last 24 hours before birth.

Sex Reprod Healthc

December 2024

Department of Midwifery, University College of Northern Denmark, Selma Lagerløfsvej 2, 9220 Aalborg Ø, Denmark; Department of Clinical Medicine, Aarhus University, Palle Juul-Jensens Boulevard 99, 8200 Aarhus N, Denmark; Department of Occupational Health, Aarhus University Hospital, Palle Juul-Jensens Boulevard 99, 8200 Aarhus N, Denmark; School of Nursing and Midwifery, Western Sydney University, Locked Bag 1797, Penrith, NSW 2751, Australia.

Introduction: Maternal position plays an essential role in achieving labour progress as it supports the physiological mechanisms of labour. Evidence supports that adopting upright positions may facilitate physiological childbirth.

Aim: To describe the use of various positionsamong nulliparous pregnant women in the last 24 h before birth and describe physical positions in relation to maternal and neonatal outcomes at time of birth.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Intraoperative neuromonitoring (IONM) is crucial for the safety of scoliosis surgery, providing real-time feedback on the spinal cord and nerve function, primarily through motor-evoked potentials (MEPs). The choice of anesthesia plays a crucial role in influencing the quality and reliability of these neuromonitoring signals. This systematic review evaluates how different anesthetic techniques-total intravenous anesthesia (TIVA), volatile anesthetics, and regional anesthesia approaches such as Erector Spinae Plane Block (ESPB), spinal, and epidural anesthesia-affect IONM during scoliosis surgery.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Want AI Summaries of new PubMed Abstracts delivered to your In-box?

Enter search terms and have AI summaries delivered each week - change queries or unsubscribe any time!