Additional droperidol, not butorphanol, augments epidural fentanyl analgesia following anorectal surgery

To examine the effects of additional droperidol or butorphanol to epidural fentanyl infusion on postsurgical analgesia.

Prospective, randomized, single blinded clinical study.

University-affiliated medical center.

60 ASA physical status I and II patients undergoing anorectal surgery by one surgeon.

Patients were randomly allocated to the following groups according to the medication that was continuously administered into the epidural space: 1) Group C (n = 20) received 0.4 mg fentanyl in 40 ml of 0.125% bupivacaine; 2) Group D (n = 20) received 2.5 mg droperidol and 0.4 mg fentanyl in 40 ml of 0.125% bupivacaine; and 3) Group B (n = 20) received 2 mg butorphanol and 0.4 mg fentanyl in 40 ml of 0.125% bupivacaine over 24 hours postoperatively.

Postsurgical analgesia and the incidence of fentanyl-related complications, such as nausea/vomiting, somnolence, pruritus, and respiratory depression, were assessed for 24 hours postoperatively. At 16 and 24 hours after surgery, 75% of patients in Group D reported no pain versus 35% in Group C (p < 0.05). In addition, the overall visual analogue scale examined at 24 hours was significantly lower in Group D than that in Group C (22 +/- 17 mm vs. 44 +/- 22 mm, respectively; p < 0.05). Simultaneously, the incidence of postoperative nausea/vomiting was lower in Group D compared with Group C (20% vs. 60%; p < 0.05). On the other hand, butorphanol did not modify the analgesic effects or complications of epidural fentanyl infusion.

In this study population, additional droperidol, not butorphanol, improved postsurgical analgesia accompanied by less incidence of nausea/vomiting during epidural fentanyl administration.