title: The effects of postoperative pain management on immune response to surgery.
abstract: Surgery is associated with immune alterations, which are the combined result of tissue damage, anesthesia, postoperative pain, and psychological stress. In the present study, we compared the effects of several postoperative pain management techniques on postoperative immune function. Patients hospitalized for abdominal surgery were randomly assigned to one of three postoperative pain management techniques: opiates on demand (intermittent opiate regimen [IOR]), patient-controlled analgesia (PCA), and patient-controlled epidural analgesia (PCEA). Postoperative pain was assessed. Blood samples were collected before and 24, 48, and 72 h after surgery. Production of interleukin (IL)-1beta, IL-2, and IL-6, natural killer cell cytotoxicity, and lymphocyte mitogenic responses were assessed. Patients of the PCEA group exhibited lower pain scores in the first 24 h after surgery compared with patients of the IOR and PCA groups. Mitogenic responses were suppressed in all groups in the first 24 h, returned to preoperative values by 72 h in the PCEA group, but remained suppressed in the PCA group. Production of IL-1beta and IL-6 increased in the IOR and PCA groups, whereas it remained almost unchanged in the PCEA group. Patients receiving an epidural mixture of opiate and local anesthetics (PCEA group) exhibited reduced suppression of lymphocyte proliferation and attenuated proinflammatory cytokine response in the postoperative period.
authors.affiliation: *Department of Anesthesiology and †Research Institute, Rabin Medical Center, Golda-Hasharon Campus, affiliated with the Sackler School of Medicine, Tel-Aviv University; ‡Department of Anesthesiology, Schneider Children's Medical Center, Petah Tiqva; and §Department of Psychology, Hebrew University, Jerusalem, Israel.
authors.forename: Benzion
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Beilin
authors.forename: Yehuda
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Shavit
authors.forename: Evelyn
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Trabekin
authors.forename: Boris
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Mordashev
authors.forename: Eduard
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Mayburd
authors.forename: Alexander
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Zeidel
authors.forename: Hanna
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Bessler
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D016058:Analgesia, Patient-Controlled; D000768:Anesthesia, General; D002455:Cell Division / Q000187:drug effects; D016207:Cytokines / Q000096:biosynthesis; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D015850:Interleukin-6 / Q000096:biosynthesis; D007694:Killer Cells, Natural / Q000187:drug effects / Q000276:immunology; D008214:Lymphocytes / Q000187:drug effects; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D008934:Mitogens / Q000494:pharmacology; D009504:Neutrophils / Q000187:drug effects / Q000276:immunology / Q000502:physiology; D010147:Pain Measurement; D010149:Postoperative Pain / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000276:immunology*; D011183:Postoperative Complications / Q000276:immunology*
chemical_list: D016207:Cytokines; D015850:Interleukin-6; D008934:Mitogens