Patient controlled intravenous analgesia (PCIA) in postoperative surgical patients: an audit

We conducted an audit for the evaluation of the effectiveness, adverse effects and degree of patient satisfaction with Patient Controlled Intravenous Analgesia (PCIA) for postoperative pain control in surgical patients.

This was an observational study. Patient, scheduled for different surgical procedures, were informed about PCIA a day before surgery and were offered PCIA for pain control after surgery. All the patients were asked to fill a questionnaire 24 hours after the start of PCIA, that contained the relevant questions reflecting the objectives of the study.

Seventy-six patients participated in the study of whom 91% had a visual analogue pain score of <3 at rest and 83% had a score of <3 at movement on visual analogue scale of 0-10. Eighty percent of patients rated the convenience of pain control as being excellent, whereas 92% stated that the dependence on nursing staff for pain management was nil. The incidence of drowsiness and nausea was 28% each, while 21% of the patients complained of restricted mobility.

Patient controlled intravenous analgesia is an excellent method of postoperative pain relief, which provides a high degree of satisfaction to the patients.