Patient-Controlled IV Analgesia-Children's Mercy Hospital Kansas City-postoperative pain

Patient-Controlled IV Analgesia-Children's Mercy Hospital Kansas City-postoperative pain refers to a specific multi-modal analgesic protocol developed and evaluated at Children's Mercy Hospital Kansas City for managing postoperative pain, particularly in pediatric patients undergoing minimally invasive pectus excavatum repair (the Nuss procedure). This strategy was designed as an alternative to thoracic epidural analgesia. The protocol involves the intraoperative administration of fentanyl for anesthesia induction, followed by postoperative hydromorphone delivered via a patient-controlled analgesia (PCA) pump. The PCA system allows for both a continuous background infusion and patient-triggered demand doses. Additionally, for patients weighing more than 35 kg, the protocol incorporates a transdermal clonidine patch to provide non-opioid synergistic analgesia. Clinical trials conducted at the hospital have shown that this PCA-based approach provides comparable pain relief to epidural analgesia with potential advantages in terms of reduced hospital stay and cost-effectiveness.

Other names

PCA protocol (Children's Mercy Hospital)Patient-Controlled Analgesia strategyPCA arm