A Multimodal Pain Management Regimen for Open Treatment of Distal Radius Fractures: A Randomized Blinded Study

Adequate pain control is critical after outpatient surgery where patients are not as closely monitored. A multimodal pain management regimen was compared to a conventional pain management method in patients undergoing operative fixation for distal radius fractures. We hypothesized that there would be a decrease in the amount of narcotics used by the multimodal group compared to the conventional pain management group, and that there would be no difference in bone healing postoperatively.

Forty-two patients were randomized into 2 groups based on pain protocols. Group 1, the control, received a regional block, acetaminophen, and oxycodone. Group 2 received a multimodal pain regimen consisting of daily doses of pregabalin, celecoxib, and acetaminophen up until postoperative day (POD) #3. They also received a regional block with oxycodone for breakthrough pain.

From POD#3 to week 1, there was a significant increase in oxycodone use in the study group correlating with the point in time when the multimodal regimen was discontinued. The shortened Disabilities of the Arm, Shoulder, and Hand Questionnaire (QuickDASH) scores taken at 2 weeks postoperation showed a significantly lower average score in the study group compared to the control. There was no difference in bone healing.

The 2 regimens yielded similar pain control after surgery. The rebound increase in narcotic use after the multimodal regimen was discontinued, and significant difference in QuickDASH scores seen at 2 weeks postoperatively supported that multimodal regimens may not necessarily lead to decreased narcotic use in outpatient upper extremity surgery, but in the short term are shown to improve functional status.