Table 3.
Efficacy of Intervention vs. Comparator with Regards to Postoperative Pain
| Reference | Pain Score | Time Period(s) | Intervention Group Pain Score | Comparator Group Pain Score | Significance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Anderson28 | VAS | Preoperative day, operative day, and POD 1 through POD 5 | No numerical value: lower VAS score visualized on figure | No numerical value: higher VAS score visualized on figure | Significantly lower pain score (p=0.02) on operative day only |
| Baxter27 | Time to VAS ≤ 3 – mean | Postoperative Period | 12.21 hours | 17.01 hours | Not significant (p=0.23) |
| Gettis32 | VAS – mean (SD) | POD 1 | 4.76 (2.09) | 5.01 (1.76) | Not significant (p=0.658) |
| Haddadi20 | VAS – mean (SD) | 0, 2, 4, 6, 12, and 24 hours postop | 0 hours: 3.20 (1.94) 2 hours: 1.67 (0.92) 4 hours: 1.83 (1.15) 6 hours: 1.33 (0.84) 12 hours: 1.20 (1.21) 24 hours: 0.93 (1.26) |
0 hours: 2.73 (1.57) 2 hours: 1.23 (0.86) 4 hours: 1.53 (1.07) 6 hours: 1.53 (1.07) 12 hours: 0.93 (0.69) 24 hours: 0.60 (0.62) |
Not significant at any time |
| Mayell33 | NRS | 1, 4, 8, 24, 48, and 72 hours postop | No numerical value: similar pain score visualized on figures | No numerical value: similar pain score visualized on figures | Not significant at any time |
| Pinto Filho31 | CRIES, CHIPPS, and Wong-Baker Faces scale depending on developmental level | 1, 4, 8, 12, 18, and 24 hours postop | No numerical value; higher frequency of “without pain” category | No numerical value; lower frequency of “without pain” category | Significantly lower pain only 4th and 8th hour post-op (p<0.05) |
| Rusy26 | NRS – mean (SD) | POD 0 through POD 5 (AM and PM) | POD 0: 2.5 (2.8) POD 1 AM: 3.2 (2.6) POD 1 PM-5 PM: Not stated |
POD 0: 6.0 (2.4) POD 1 AM: 5.0 (2.2) POD 1 PM-5 PM: Not stated |
Significantly lower pain score on POD 0 (p<0.001) and POD 1 AM (p<0.05) only |
| Thomas25 | NRS – mean (SD) | POD 1 through 3 | POD 1: 5 (2) POD 2: 5 (2) POD 3: 5 (3) |
POD 1: 6 (2) POD 2: 7 (2) POD 3: 6 (3) |
Significantly lower on POD 2 (p=0.0025) only |
| Tomaszek24 | NRS at rest, during deep breathing, and during cough – median (IQR) | POD 0 through POD 3 | At rest: POD 0: 0.5 (0.3–0.8) POD 1: 0.4 (0.0–0.7) POD 2: 0.0 (0.0–0.7) POD 3: 0.0 (0.0–0.6) During deep breathing: POD 0: 0.4 (0.3–0.9) POD 1: 0.3 (0.1–0.6) POD 2: 0.1 (0.0–0.3) POD 3: 0.0 (0.0–0.2) During cough: POD 0: 0.6 (0.3–0.7) POD 1: 0.5 (0.2–0.5) POD 2: 0.3 (0.0–0.5) POD 3: 0.0 (0.0–0.3) |
At rest: POD 0: 0.5 (0.3–1.0) POD 1: 0.1 (0.0–0.8) POD 2: 0.5 (0.0–1.0) POD 3: 0.5 (0.0–1.1) During deep breathing: POD 0: 0.3 (0.1–0.6) POD 1: 0.2 (0.0–0.4) POD 2: 0.0 (0.0–0.2) POD 3: 0.0 (0.0–0.3) During cough: POD 0: 0.4 (0.2–0.8) POD 1: 0.3 (0.0–0.7) POD 2: 0.1 (0.0–0.3) POD 3: 0.0 (0.0–0.6) |
Not significant at any time |
| Trzcinski23 | NRS or Wong-Baker FACES scale depending on developmental level – mean | POD 1 through POD 4 | POD 1: 3.51 POD 2: 3.57 POD 3: 3.35 POD 4: 3.12 |
POD 1: 4.00 POD 2: 4.12 POD 3: 3.83 POD 4: 3.43 |
Significantly lower on POD 1 (p=0.012), POD 2 (p=0.002), and POD 3 (0.037) only |
| Wang22 | VAS | Day of hospitalization, day of randomization, operative day, and POD 1 through 14 | No numerical value: lower VAS score visualized on figure from POD 4 though POD 9 | No numerical value: higher VAS score visualized on figure from POD 4 though POD 9 | Significantly lower pain score (p<0.05) from POD 4–9 only |
VAS, visual analog scale (0–10); POD, postoperative day; NRS, numerical rating score (0–10); ME, morphine equivalents; SD, Standard Deviation; IQR, Interquartile Range