Combined Ibuprofen and Acetaminophen IV therapy proved an effective pain relief option

Intravenous (IV) administration of Acetaminophen and Ibuprofen was found to provide superior post-thyroidectomy pain relief compared with acetaminophen alone, a study published in ‘Head & Neck’ journal elucidated.

This double-blind clinical trial by Jaesik Park and colleagues investigated the analgesic effects of Acetaminophen and Ibuprofen IV use instantly after thyroidectomy. A total of 62 patients who underwent thyroidectomies were randomized to either the treatment group i.e. Acetaminophen 1000 mg + Ibuprofen 300 mg or the control group i.e. Acetaminophen 1000 mg. The visual analogue scale (VAS) was used to evaluate postoperative pain intensity at the start, 15 minutes and 30 minutes after the admission to the recovery room. The use of opioids was also logged.

The VAS scores (Table 1) and opioid rescue dose requirements were considerably lower in the treatment than in the control group after recovery room admission.