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Updated: Jul 10, 2026
06:04
Objective Nociceptive Assessment in Ventilated ICU Patients: A Feasibility Study Using Pupillometry and the Nociceptive Flexion Reflex
Published on: July 4, 2018
The "oligoanalgesia problem" in the emergency care
Ana Maria Calil1, Cibele Andracioli de Mattos Pimenta, Dário Birolini
1School of Nursing, University of São PauloSP, Brasil.
Clinics (Sao Paulo, Brazil)
|October 24, 2007
Summary
Trauma patients in Brazil frequently experience severe pain, yet it remains undertreated. This study found that analgesia, particularly opioids, was underutilized even in stable patients with significant pain.
Area of Science:
- Trauma care
- Pain management
- Emergency medicine
Background:
- Pain is a prevalent and detrimental consequence for trauma victims.
- Pain management in Brazil, especially opioid use, is under-researched and inadequately addressed.
Purpose of the Study:
- To quantify pain intensity in traffic accident survivors.
- To assess the utilization of analgesic interventions in this patient cohort.
Main Methods:
- A prospective study of 100 traffic accident victims in São Paulo.
- Data collection included pain assessment and medication records at two post-trauma intervals.
- Patients had a Glasgow Coma Scale of 15 and stable hemodynamics.
Main Results:
- Ninety percent of patients reported moderate to severe pain intensity.
- After three hours, 48% of patients with pain received no analgesia.
- Opioid administration was infrequent.
Conclusions:
- Pain is a common and significant issue in trauma care.
- Inadequate pain management and underutilization of opioids persist in Brazilian emergency services.
- Even hemodynamically stable patients with severe pain and a Glasgow Coma Scale of 15 are often undertreated.
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