[Intramuscular ketorolac compared to subcutaneous tramadol in the initial emergency treatment of renal colic].
OBJECTIVE
To compare the efficacy and safety of two analgesics (tramadol and ketorolac) for initial emergency treatment of renal colic.


METHODS
A prospective study on 48 patients randomly assigned to treatment with ketorolac 30 mg i.m. and tramadol 1 mg/kg s.c. Pain intensity was evaluated by a simple analogic scale ranging from 0-4 (0 = no pain, 1 = mild, 2 = moderate, 3 = severe and 4 = very severe pain). Statistical analyses were performed with Student's test and the chi square test for numerical and qualitative data, respectively.


RESULTS
No significant differences were found for the overall efficacy (> 80%) or side effects in both groups. However, a difference was found between both groups for pain score 15 minutes post-injection, which showed i.m. ketorolac to be more effective.


CONCLUSIONS
Both ketorolac (30 mg i.m.) and tramadol (1 mg/kg s.c.) are effective in the initial treatment of renal colic. Both drugs have an efficacy greater than 80% when used separately and almost 100% when used in combination. The analgesic effect of ketorolac is observed earlier than that of tramadol.
Nicolás Torralba
J A
JA
Servicio de Urología, Hospital Universitario Virgen de la Arrixaca, El Palmar, Murcia, España.
Rigabert Montiel
M
M
Bañón Pérez
V
V
Valdelvira Nadal
P
P
Pérez Albacete
M
M
D018712:Analgesics, Non-Narcotic / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D000701:Analgesics, Opioid / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D003085:Colic / Q000188:drug therapy*; D004630:Emergencies; D006801:Humans; D007273:Injections, Intramuscular; D007279:Injections, Subcutaneous; D020910:Ketorolac; D007674:Kidney Diseases / Q000188:drug therapy*; D010147:Pain Measurement; D011446:Prospective Studies; D014046:Tolmetin / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000031:analogs & derivatives*; D014147:Tramadol / Q000008:administration & dosage*
D018712:Analgesics, Non-Narcotic; D000701:Analgesics, Opioid; D014147:Tramadol; D014046:Tolmetin; D020910:Ketorolac
Ketorolaco intramuscular frente a tramadol subcutáneo en el tratamiento inicial de urgencia del cólico renal.