Efficacy of intranasal ketamine in controlling pain caused by bone fractures: A single-center double blind randomized controlled trial

Introduction

Bone fractures are recognized as the second most prevalent cause of pain for patients seeking treatment in medical facilities. This study aims to evaluate the efficacy of intranasal and intravenous ketamine in comparison to intravenous morphine in alleviating severe pain in patients presenting to emergency departments with various bone fractures.

Method & material

The clinical trial was conducted on patients over the age of 18 who presented at the emergency department of Imam Reza Educational and Medical Center with bone fractures. These patients were divided into three groups for treatment: intranasal ketamine at a dose of 1 mg/kg body weight, intravenous ketamine at a dose of 0.5 mg/kg body weight, and intravenous morphine at a dose of 0.1 mg/kg body weight. The severity of pain experienced by patients was documented using the numerical pain rating scale at the time of admission, and then at 15 min, 30 min, and 60 min after drug administration.

Results

The results of the study revealed that there was no statistically significant difference in the efficacy of pain relief among the three study groups (p=0.77). The interaction of (time*type of drug) had no significant effect on pain intensity (p=0.58). There was no statistically significant difference in side effects reported by patients between the three study groups, with the intranasal ketamine group reporting only minor side effects.

Conclusion

The results of this study showed significant effects of intranasal ketamine and intravenous ketamine in reducing pain in patients with bone fractures. The findings further suggest that the analgesic effect of intranasal ketamine is comparable to that of intravenous ketamine and morphine, with no significant adverse effects observed.