Continuous low-dose ketamine improves the analgesic effects of fentanyl patient-controlled analgesia after cervical spine surgery.
BACKGROUND
The effects of fentanyl with ketamine for postoperative pain are unknown. We investigated the adjuvant effects of ketamine for fentanyl patient-controlled analgesia.


METHODS
Cervical and lumbar spine surgery patients were divided into three groups: ketamine 1 mg/kg followed by 42 and 83 microg x kg(-1) x h(-1) in ketamine-1 and ketamine-2 group, respectively, and a control group. Postoperative patient-controlled analgesia fentanyl was administered with a background infusion.


RESULTS
Pain scores and analgesia requirement in the ketamine-2 group were significantly lower than those of the control group after cervical surgery. Ketamine partially improved the analgesic effects of fentanyl after lumbar surgery.


CONCLUSIONS
Small-dose ketamine improved the analgesic effects of fentanyl after cervical surgery.
Yamauchi
Masanori
M
Department of Anesthesiology, Sapporo Medical University School of Medicine, S1 W16 Chuo-ku, Sapporo, Hokkaido 060-8543, Japan. yamauchi@sapmed.ac.jp
Asano
Makoto
M
Watanabe
Masanori
M
Iwasaki
Soushi
S
Furuse
Shingo
S
Namiki
Akiyoshi
A
D000368:Aged; D016058:Analgesia, Patient-Controlled / Q000379:methods*; D000700:Analgesics / Q000008:administration & dosage; D000701:Analgesics, Opioid / Q000008:administration & dosage; D005260:Female; D005283:Fentanyl / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D013502:General Surgery / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D007649:Ketamine / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010149:Postoperative Pain / Q000188:drug therapy*; D013131:Spine / Q000601:surgery*; D016896:Treatment Outcome
D000700:Analgesics; D000701:Analgesics, Opioid; D007649:Ketamine; D005283:Fentanyl