Comparison of Analgesic Effect Between Gabapentin and Diclofenac on Post-Operative Pain in Patients Undergoing Tonsillectomy

Background: Tonsillectomy is a common procedure causing considerable postoperative pain. Postoperative pain intensity of 60-70 in the scale of visual analog scale (VAS) has been reported up to 3-4 days which could continue until 11 days after the surgery. Objectives: The current study aimed to compare the analgesic effect of gabapentin and diclofenac on pain after tonsillectomy with the control group. Patients and Methods: In this double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial, 90 patients aged 10-25 years, ASA classes I and II were randomly selected to receive 20 mg/kg oral gabapentin (n = 30), 1.0 mg / kg rectal diclofenac (n = 30) or placebo (n = 30) preoperatively Pain was evaluated postoperatively on a visual analogue scale at 2, 6,12 and 24 h. Opioid consumption in the first 24 h after surgery and the side effects were also recorded. Results: There was no significant difference n terms of age, sex, and time of surgery in the three groups. Patients in the gabapentin and diclofenac groups had significantly lower pain scores at all-time intervals than those in the placebo group. The total meperidine consumed in the gabapentin (14.16 +/- 6.97 P = 0.001) and diclofenac (16.66 +/- 8.95, P = 0.004) groups was significantly less than that of the placebo (33.4 +/- 13.97) group. The frequency of side effects such as vomiting, dizziness, and headache was not significantly different among the groups. Conclusions: It can be concluded that gabapentin and diclofenac reduced postoperative pain and opioid consumption without obvious side effects. Published by Kowssar, 2012. cc3.0.