Pain management in the postoperative congenital heart disease patient

Pharmacological analgesia in neonates undergoing cardiac surgery

The objectives of this study were to verify the frequency of pharmacological analgesia and the occurrence of postoperative pain in neonates undergoing cardiac surgery. METHODS: This is a cross-sectional study and data were collected from 30 medical charts of neonates who underwent cardiac surgery in a private hospital in the city of São Paulo. RESULTS: The majority (96.6%) of neonates received analgesia: 18 (60.0%) received continuous analgesics, five (16.7%) received intermittent drugs, and six (20.0%) received a combination of continuous and intermittent analgesics. Fentanyl citrate was continuously administered to 24 (80.0%) neonates. Intermittent dipyrone and morphine was administered to ten (33.3%) and one (3.3%) neonates, respectively. Pain registers were observed in 17 (56.7%) medical charts and the occurrence of pain among neonates who received analgesics was 53.4%. CONCLUSION: There was no efficacy in pharmacological postoperative pain control in the neonates included in this study.