Cannabidiol (CBD) for Pain, Postoperative

Pain severity in the postoperative period is a major problem and a patient's general state and condition are also a major determinant of their postoperative pain. The more the patient has undergone a previous operation, is younger and has some other health problems, the more likely they will suffer pain postoperatively. In addition, older patients suffer pain during operations involving major trauma (e.g., brain, spinal, cardiovascular, etc.) and they are more likely to experience more severe postoperative pain. Moreover, in general anesthesia patients, the extent of postoperative pain can be minimized by preventing and then treating the condition triggering the pain in order to reduce the number and severity of postoperative pains.

Common treatments for pain include analgesics, NSAIDs, opioids, and antipyretics. Other important issues involved in the care of the postoperative patient are addressing nutritional deficiencies (including calcium, magnesium, and vitamin D), monitoring physiologic parameters, and providing emotional support during the postoperative period.

Results from a recent clinical trial demonstrates pain to be a significant problem in both the ICU and in the acute general ward. It also demonstrates that pain management is an ongoing challenge; however patients receive analgesia they will continue to experience pain despite receiving the analgesia and suffer from further distress. Effective communication is also necessary and essential to ensure patient satisfaction but also efficient use of resources and staff and patients overall well-being.

Many patients are not benefiting from postoperative pain as intended. Thus, pain management is a missed opportunity in some surgical clinics. We identified several possible solutions that could help us improve our postoperative pain management: more patient education before surgery and clearer explanations after surgery.

Pain is prevalent in postoperative settings, and there is growing knowledge that pain is associated with other patient centered outcomes, such as length of stay or readmission. This information can be used to reduce pain, which in turn can have significant economic and human value. Further research is needed to understand whether the prevalence of postoperative pain and how pain is managed, and to develop strategies to identify patients needing more comprehensive pain management.

Half of the US population has major surgical, hospital, and procedural pain annually. While the reasons for pain are a wide variety of considerations, patients have an urgent need to be well prepared for future pain after surgery or hospital care. Hospitals and health plans are not protecting themselves, and the public, from excessive postoperative pain.

CBD's are not a specific therapy, there is a lot of evidence to support that CBD's can be used as a therapeutic tool to combat anxiety symptom severity. CBD can be administered intravenously or via oral ingestion and there is very limited evidence to support the use of CBD in managing PONV. In general, there is insufficient data to support CBD as a single therapeutic choice for managing PONV. The role that CBD can potentially play in other GI conditions is unclear, and thus further research is required.

The primary cause of pain in our patient population was mostly benign conditions. However, given its frequency and severity, postoperative pain should be systematically and carefully investigated. In fact, when pain persists or when patients are not satisfied with the care, an evaluation in a specialty center may be helpful.

Serious postoperative pain can be both under-reported and overlooked. Patients may have pain if they have not been offered pain management and patients may not have been given proper instructions or adequate pain relief upon discharge, which can result in under-treating.

On average, people with pain due to elective surgery feel their pain 1 month after surgery. The percentage of people who feel pain more than 3 months after surgery is higher than the percentage of people with pain less than 3 months after surgery. Pain after surgery is a substantial issue for people and many do not feel like they get the treatment they need. Because of this, it is important that the average age a person feels postoperative pain is understood and understood correctly by healthcare providers.

The potential positive effects of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) on postoperative pain are well documented. However, it is difficult to determine the correct dosage of NSAIDs for pain control after surgery. In our experience, intravenous (IV) opiates are equally effective and safer than oral (PO) oral analgesics with minimal or no adverse effects. We would recommend clinical trials of NSAIDs in pain following surgery.