The Role of Intraoperative Pain Assessment Tool in Improving the Management of Postoperative Pain

Background: Several studies have proven that despite the availability of quite a number of novel pain management techniques and medications, optimal perioperative pain control still remains a great challenge. Therefore, this suggests that no effort should be spared towards finding the right antidote to address the nagging challenge of inadequate perioperative pain management. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of perioperative pain assessment with standardised pain assessment tools, as well as the role of preventive analgesia on postoperative pain outcomes.

Methods: This study was carried out at the Tamale Teaching Hospital, Tamale, Ghana, West Africa. To achieve the objective of this study, 60 participants were recruited. They were randomly selected into two groups of 30 respondents for each group. Members of the study group (A) were assessed pre-operatively with a Numerical Pain Rating scale before they were given preventive analgesia and afterwards were then re-assessed with the same scale. Members of the study group were also assessed periodically during surgery with an Anaesthetized Patient Pain Scale and interventional pain therapy administered depending on their pain scores after each assessment. Respondents in the control group (B) were also assessed pre-operatively with the Numerical Pain Rating Scale, but afterwards they received the routine anaesthesia care as standard practice of the institution. Both groups had their immediate postoperative pain intensity levels assessed within the postoperative period of 1-12 hours with a Numerical Pain Rating Scale.

Results: Group A had a mean postoperative pain score of 4.57 which was lower, compared to a mean postoperative pain score of 6.47 for group B and the P-value for the comparison of the immediate postoperative pain scores of the two groups was less than 0.001.

Conclusions: The results of this study have adequately demonstrated that the use of standard pain rating tools for perioperative pain assessment, as well as implementing the concept of preventive analgesia, will contribute towards enhancing perioperative pain control and minimising postoperative complications related to pain.