Implementation of a Standardized Multimodal Postoperative Analgesia Protocol Improves Pain Control, Reduces Opioid Consumption, and Shortens Length of Hospital Stay After Posterior Lumbar Spinal Fusion.
Department
Neurosurgery; Pharmacy
Document Type
Article
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Multimodal analgesia regimens have been suggested to improve pain control and reduce opioid consumption after surgery.
OBJECTIVE: To institutionally implement an evidence-based quality improvement initiative to standardize and optimize pain treatment following neurosurgical procedures. Our goal was to objectively evaluate efficacy of this multimodal protocol.
METHODS: A retrospective cohort analysis of pain-related outcomes after posterior lumbar fusion procedures was performed. We compared patients treated in the 6 mo preceding (PRE) and 6 mo following (POST) protocol execution.
RESULTS: A total of 102 PRE and 118 POST patients were included. The cohorts were well-matched regarding sex, age, surgical duration, number of segments fused, preoperative opioid consumption, and baseline physical status (all P > .05). Average patient-reported numerical rating scale pain scores significantly improved in the first 24 hr postoperatively (5.6 vs 4.5, P < .001) and 24 to 72 hr postoperatively (4.7 vs 3.4, P < .001), PRE vs POST, respectively. Maximum pain scores and time to achieving appropriate pain control also significantly improved during these same intervals (all P < .05). A concomitant decrease in opioid consumption during the first 72 hr was seen (110 vs 71 morphine milligram equivalents, P = .02). There was an observed reduction in opioid-related adverse events per patient (1.31 vs 0.83, P < .001) and hospital length of stay (4.6 vs 3.9 days, P = .03) after implementation of the protocol.
CONCLUSION: Implementation of an evidence-based, multimodal analgesia protocol improved postoperative outcomes, including pain scores, opioid consumption, and length of hospital stay, after posterior lumbar spinal fusion.
Publication Date
7-1-2020
Publication Title
Neurosurgery
ISSN
1524-4040
Volume
87
Issue
1
First Page
130
Last Page
136
PubMed ID
31414128
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
10.1093/neuros/nyz312
Recommended Citation
Walker, Corey T; Gullotti, David M; Prendergast, Virginia; Radosevich, John J; Godzik, Jakub; Cole, Tyler S; Godzik, Jakub; Patel, Arpan A; Whiting, Alexander C; Little, Andrew S; Uribe, Juan S.; Kakarla, U Kumar; and Turner, Jay D, "Implementation of a Standardized Multimodal Postoperative Analgesia Protocol Improves Pain Control, Reduces Opioid Consumption, and Shortens Length of Hospital Stay After Posterior Lumbar Spinal Fusion." (2020). Neurosurgery. 665.
https://scholar.barrowneuro.org/neurosurgery/665