Patient controlled intravenous analgesia (PCIA) in postoperative surgical patients: An audit

Objective: We conducted an audit for the evaluation of the effectiveness, adverse effects and degree of patient satisfaction with Patient Controlled Intravenous Analgesia (PCIA) for postoperative pain control in surgical patients. Method: This was an observational study. Patient, scheduled for different surgical procedures, were informed about PCIA a day before surgery and were offered PCIA for pain control after surgery. All the patients were asked to fill a questionnaire 24 hours after the start of PCIA, that contained the relevant questions reflecting the objectives of the study. Results: Seventy-six patients participated in the study of whom 91% had a visual analogue pain score of <3 at rest and 83% had a score of <3 at movement on visual analogue scale of 0-10. Eighty percent of patients rated the convenience of pain control as being excellent, whereas 92% stated that the dependence on nursing staff for pain management was nil. The incidence of drowsiness and nausea was 28% each, while 21% of the patients complained of restricted mobility. Conclusion: Patient controlled intravenous analgesia is an excellent method of postoperative pain relief, which provides a high degree of satisfaction to the patients.