Effect of nalbuphine on intrabiliary pressure in the early postoperative period

The effect of nalbuphine on common bile duct (CBD) pressure was studied by measurements through T-tubes on the first and second postoperative days after cholecystectomy and choledochotomy. Nalbuphine in a dose of 0.25 mg X kg-1 was injected intramuscularly in 11 patients, and changes in biliary pressure, heart and respiratory rate, blood pressure, and arterial blood gases were recorded during the subsequent four hours. The patients were free of pain, had stable common bile duct pressures and did not have any statistically significant changes in their vital signs. These results are similar to our previous observations during perioperative intravenous injection of nalbuphine. It is suggested that nalbuphine does not significantly change, or even may relax, the sphincter of Oddi, and can therefore be recommended as a safe analgesic in the postoperative period after extrahepatic biliary surgery.