Evaluation of the contribution to postoperative analgesia by local cooling of the wound

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Abstract
Thirty healthy patients undergoing lumbar spine surgery were randomly assigned to one of two groups for postoperative pain relief. Group 1 received morphine via patient controlled analgesia and local cooling of the wound by an externally applied cooling pad while group 2 received patient controlled analgesia alone. There was a significant reduction in morphine consumption when local cooling was applied (18.6 mg versus 30.2 mg at 12 h, 29.0 mg versus 49.6 mg at 24 h, p < 0.05). Patients were also significantly more satisfied with their overall postoperative pain management when cooling therapy was used.