A Prospective, Observational Study to Evaluate the Role of Gabapentin as Preventive Analgesic in Thyroidectomy under General Anesthesia

BACKGROUND: Effective management of postoperative pain is a part of well-organized perioperative care, which helps in reduced morbidity and improved patient satisfaction. Preventive analgesia can reduce acute and chronic pain by blocking the noxious inputs to pain pathways, preventing sensitization. Studies have reported efficacy of gabapentin as a preventive analgesic in perioperative pain. In this study, we aimed to determine whether preoperative gabapentin reduced postoperative pain and tramadol consumption after thyroidectomy under general anesthesia. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Sixty patients scheduled for thyroidectomy were allocated to two groups of thirty each for this prospective, observational study. Patients in Group A and Group B received oral gabapentin 600 mg (6 × 10(−4) kg) and diazepam 10 mg (1 × 10(−5) kg), respectively, 2 h prior to surgery. Tramadol was given as rescue analgesic for postoperative pain with a verbal rating score of two. The analgesic efficacy of preoperative gabapentin was assessed in terms of postoperative pain scores at rest or swallowing, time to first rescue analgesic, and total tramadol consumption for 24 h. Ramsay sedation score and side effects of drug were also looked into. RESULTS: Postoperative pain scores and total tramadol consumption were significantly lower in Group A during 24 h (P = 0.00). Time to first rescue analgesic was significantly prolonged in Group A (P = 0.001). Side effects were comparable. CONCLUSION: Oral gabapentin is effective as a preventive analgesic in reducing postoperative pain and tramadol consumption after thyroidectomy under general anesthesia.