Preoperative Gabapentin for Pain Control: A Randomized, Placebo-controlled Clinical Trial in Patients Undergoing Inguinal Hernioplasty

Purpose

The perioperative use of gabapentin has been suggested to reduce postoperative pain and opioid consumption. However, there is a variation in clinical practice, the type of surgery and the administration time seem to be distinct between the available studies. We assess whether gabapentin administered before surgery reduces postoperative pain in patients who have undergone inguinal hernioplasty.

Design

This is a double-blind, randomized, and placebo-controlled trial.

Methods

Seventy-seven patients scheduled for inguinal hernioplasty were randomized in two groups to receive gabapentin (900 mg) or placebo in the perioperative period. The primary outcome was analgesia measured by visual analog scale up to 30 days after surgery. The secondary outcomes such as morphine consumption, nausea, headache, and sedation have been also described.

Findings

Patients who received gabapentin had lower postoperative pain scores compared to the control group, P < .001. The postoperative morphine use was significantly lower in the gabapentin (5.3%) versus placebo group (74.4%), P < .001. No significant difference between groups was observed for the occurrence of adverse events.

Conclusions

The perioperative administration of gabapentin was effective in reducing postoperative pain and had an important effect in decreasing morphine use. Together, our data reveal a long-lasting opioid-sparing effect of gabapentin in patients who underwent inguinal hernioplasty.