Intravenous versus oral paracetamol for postoperative analgesia: A systematic review

Abstract

Paracetamol is a widely used analgesic agent that can be given by several different routes of administration. In the surgical setting, intravenous infusions of paracetamol are used, but an alternative is using oral paracetamol as a premedication. This systematic review is the first to compare the relative efficacy of intravenous and oral paracetamol at providing postoperative analgesia. Nine relevant studies were identified. Intravenous paracetamol resulted in a postoperative pain score of 0.5 points lower than in those receiving oral paracetamol premedication. Patients receiving intravenous paracetamol also had a small reduction in postoperative opioid requirements, but the time at which rescue analgesia was required did not differ. These results suggest that intravenous paracetamol may offer a small advantage over oral paracetamol premedication at providing postoperative analgesia.