Multimodal analgesia for postoperative pain in Asia: a review of evidence with clinical focus on dexketoprofen and tramadol/dexketoprofen fixed-dose combination

Abstract

The majority of patients who have undergone surgery experience moderate-to-severe postoperative pain. Asian patients tend to under-report pain and are consequently under-treated. Poor postoperative pain management increases the risk of morbidity, prolonged opioid use, lower quality of life outcomes and the risk of chronic post-surgical pain. Multimodal analgesia is the cornerstone of postoperative pain management. Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs are considered a core component of multimodal analgesia due to their anti-inflammatory and analgesic properties. Use of a consistent non-steroidal anti-inflammatory throughout the postoperative period can help to achieve and maintain adequate pain relief. This review investigates the use of multimodal analgesia in postoperative pain management in Asia, with a focus on clinicians’ experience with dexketoprofen as a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory therapy throughout the postoperative period and its combination as fixed dose with Tramadol, a centrally acting synthetic opioid analgesic, in Asian patients, when necessary.