The Department of Anaesthesia, Kandang Kerbau Hospital in Singapore, offers the following types of pain relief for post-operative patients
May 28, 2008Opioid Infusion Analgesia - Opioids such as morphine or pethidine are given through an intravenous drip continuously at a fixed rate for one day. Some patients may develop drowsiness, nausea and vomiting with opioids.
Patient-controlled analgesia - The patient administers a fixed dose of opioid in the drip by pressing a button whenever she feels the pain. A bleep is heard whenever the button is pressed, indicating a successful adminitstration. There is no fear of overdose as the patient presses the button only when she feels the pain and the device is fitted with a lock out mechanism, whereby a dose in only administered once over a specific time span.
Epidural Analgesia - An epidural is performed by a trained anaesthetist. A needle is inserted in the lower back into the epidural space which is the within the spinal column, and a fine plastic tube is threaded through it. A local anaesthetic solution is then given through the tube at regular intervals or continuously in a diluted form for as long as pain relief is required. The effect is felt in ten to 15 minutes. Epidural analgesia only blocks off any feeling of pain from the waist down.
