A comparative study between oral pregabalin and gabapentin in prolongation of postoperative pain relief after spinal anesthesia

Abstract

Background: Preemptive analgesia involves the introduction of an analgesic regimen before the onset of noxious stimuli, with the goal of preventing sensitization of the nervous system to subsequent stimuli that could amplify pain. Aims: To compare the efficacy of pregabalin and gabapentin as preemptive analgesics in surgery below the umbilicus under spinal anesthesia. Materials and Methods: This study was conducted in a time span of 1 year in a tertiary care hospital of eastern India after obtaining institutional ethical clearance and informed consent of the subjects. Sixty-two patients were randomly allocated to two groups using an online randomizer. Group G (n = 31) received single dose of gabapentin 1,200 mg and Group P (n = 31) received a single dose of pregabalin 300 mg. the parameters were studied for comparing the quality of intraoperative and postoperative analgesia and sedation and complications. Results: In the 24 h of postoperative period, the mean visual analogue scale (VAS) scores at rest of Group P was always significantly lower than those of Group G. In Group G (gabapentin group) rescue analgesic was given after 9.41 ± 1.84 h while in Group P (pregabalin group), rescue analgesic was required after 15.38 ± 3.52 h. In Group G subsequent rescue analgesic was required in only three cases while in Group P, subsequent rescue analgesic was required in only two cases. In the pregabalin group, the incidence of somnolence and dizziness was significantly less than the other group. Conclusion: Single oral dose of pregabalin (300 mg) given preoperatively provides better postoperative pain control and decreases postoperative rescue analgesic consumption compared to a single dose of gabapentin (1,200 mg).