Analgesic efficacy of tramadol 2 mg kg(-1) for paediatric day-case adenoidectomy

We studied the analgesic efficacy of tramadol 2 mg kg(-1) for post-operative analgesia after day-case adenoidectomy in children aged 1-3 yr. Eighty children were allocated randomly to receive tramadol 2 mg kg(-1) i.v. or placebo immediately after induction of anaesthesia. Anaesthesia was induced with alfentanil 10 microg kg(-1) and propofol 4 mg kg(-1) followed by mivacurium 0.2 mg kg(-1) for tracheal intubation. Anaesthesia was continued with sevoflurane in nitrous oxide and oxygen. All children were given ibuprofen rectally at approximately 10 mg kg(-1) before the start of surgery. Post-operative pain and recovery assessments were performed by a nurse blinded to the analgesic treatment using the Aldrete recovery score, the pain/discomfort scale and measurement of recovery times. Rescue medication (pethidine in increments of 5 mg i.v.) was administered according to the pain scores. A post-operative questionnaire was used to evaluate the need for analgesia at home up to 24 h after operation. Rescue analgesic at home was rectal or oral ibuprofen 125 mg. Children in the tramadol group required fewer pethidine doses than those in the placebo group (P = 0.014). Forty-five per cent of children receiving tramadol did not require post-operative analgesia at all compared with 15% of children receiving placebo (P = 0.003). Recovery times and the incidence of adverse effects were similar in the two groups in the recovery room and at home. The requirement for rectal ibuprofen at home did not differ between groups.