The Effect of 5-Hydroxytryptamine Receptor Antagonist in Preventing Pain/Limb Shrinkage Reaction Associated with Rocuronium Injection

OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the effect and safety of 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT) receptor antagonist in alleviating the pain of patients under general anesthesia induced by rocuronium injection and preemptive analgesia. METHODS: Meta-analysis was conducted with RevMan 5.1 software by electronically retrieving the databases of PubMed, Embase, the Cochrane Library, WanFang Data, and CNKI and collecting the published random control tests (RCTs) where 5-hydroxytryptamine receptor antagonist was used to alleviate the pain/limb shrinkage reaction associated with rocuronium injection. RESULTS: Seven RTCs, including 556 patients, were included. The results of meta-analysis showed the following. (1) Compared to the control group, 5-HT receptor antagonist could prevent the total pain/limb shrinkage reaction associated with rocuronium injection [RR=0.62, 95% CI (0.54, 0.71), P<0.00001] and reduce the incidence rate of mild and moderate pain/limb shrinkage reaction associated with rocuronium injection [RR=0.46, 95% CI (0.33, 0.63), P<0.00001; RR=0.18, 95% CI (0.11, 0.31), P<0.000 01]. (2) Compared to the lidocaine group, the incidence rate was higher in preventing the pain/limb shrinkage reaction associated with rocuronium injection by 5-HT receptor antagonist, which was statistically significant [RR=1.33, 95% CI (1.05, 1.68), P=0.02]. CONCLUSION: 5-hydroxytryptamine receptor antagonist may be effective in preventing the pain/limb shrinkage reaction associated with rocuronium injection.