A comparison of effectiveness of oral acetaminophen and ibuprofen in post-operative pain management after tonsillectomy

Abstract

Objectives: To compare the effectiveness of oral acetaminophen and ibuprofen in post-operative pain management after tonsillectomy. Study Design: Randomized Control Trial. Settings: Department of ENT, PNS Shifa Hospital Karachi. Period: 6 months from 10-11-2016 to 09-05-2017. Material & Methods: Overall 80 cases (40 in both group) were assessed in this study. Patients randomly allocated in group-A and group-B. Group-A was given syrup acetaminophen (10-15mg/kg body weight PO 6 hourly) and group-B received syrup ibuprofen (4-10 mg/kg body weight PO 8 hourly). Results: Mean age was 6.53±2.16 years in group A and 6.68±2.39 years in group-B. We had 22 females (55.0%) in group-A and 23 females (57.5%) in group-B. Mean surgery time was 46.60±5.86 minutes in group-A while 46.60±6.14 minutes in group-B. Mean weight of patients was 20.83±5.20kg in group-A and 21.88±5.07kg in group-B. Mean pain score was significantly less in group-B in comparison to group-A at 6h, 12h, 18h and 24h. Stratification for age, gender, duration of operation and for weight was carried out. Conclusion: On the basis of this study, we conclude that ibuprofen is significantly better in pain relief after tonsillectomy as compared to acetaminophen.