Postoperative Analgesic Efficacy of Preemptive and Postoperative Lornoxicam or Tramadol in Lumbar Disc Surgery.

OBJECTIVE: To compare preemptive and postoperative analgesic efficacy of tramadol and lornoxicam administered before anaesthesia induction in lumbar discectomy. METHODS: This randomised, double-blind trial was conducted on 60 ASA I and II patients undergoing lumbar discectomy. Group L (n=30) received 3×8 mg day-1 lornoxicam, and Group T (n=30) received 3×1.5 mg kg-1 day-1 tramadol. A verbal rating scale (VRS), the duration of effective analgesia, the number of additional analgesics used, adverse effects and patient satisfaction were evaluated at the postoperative 30th minute and 1st, 2nd, 4th, 6th, 8th, 12th and 24th hours. RESULTS: There were no significant differences between Groups L and T regarding demographic and clinical characteristics, the number of additional analgesics and the duration of effective analgesia, adverse effects and patient satisfaction. VRS scores of the patients in Group T were significantly higher than those in Group L at the postoperative 30th minute (p=0.050) and the 1st hour (p=0.005). CONCLUSION: Lornoxicam, which was used for preemptive and postoperative analgesia in lumbar disc surgery, had provided adequate and effective analgesia such as tramadol. Moreover, preemptive analgesia was quite effective in prevention and treatment of postoperative pain.