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SCOTT A. STRASSELS, PHARM.D., BCPS, is a Ph.D. degree candidate in the Pharmaceutical Outcomes Research and Policy Program, University of Washington, Seattle. EWAN MCNICOL, B.S.PHARM., M.S. in Pain Research, Education, and Policy, is Pharmacist and Researcher, Tufts–New England Medical Center, Boston, MA. ROSY SULEMAN, PHARM.D., is Regional Scientific Associate Director, Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation, Carlsbad, CA; at the time of writing she was Manager of Regional Medical Services, Janssen Medical Affairs, LLC, Carlsbad.

Address correspondence to Dr. Strassels at the Department of Pharmacy, School of Pharmacy, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195 (scotts1{at}u.washington.edu) (before November 6, 2005) and the Division of Pharmacy Practice, College of Pharmacy, The University of Texas at Austin, 1 University Station, PHR 3.208E, A1910, Austin, TX 78712-0120 (after November 6, 2005).

Purpose. The pharmacotherapy and assessment of postoperative pain in general pharmacy practice settings are reviewed. Summary. Numerous factors related to all levels of society and the health care system contribute to suboptimal treatment of postoperative pain, despite awareness of this challenge for at least the past 30 years and the availability of potent analgesics and tools to help clinicians care for persons with postoperative pain. The consequences of acute pain include clinical, economic, and patient-reported outcomes; thus, improving the treatment of postoperative pain has the potential to improve health care from a broad perspective. Opioids remain the cornerstone of treatment of postoperative pain. Multimodal analgesia also has the potential to improve the pharmacotherapy of postoperative pain. In addition to the appropriate use of drugs, it is important that clinicians be comfortable with equianalgesic dosage conversion, helping ensure that analgesic-related adverse effects are minimal, assessing pain and function, and incorporating this information into patient care. Conclusion. Providing optimal management of postoperative pain is a vital goal for all health care providers. There is substantial potential for pharmacists to help meet this goal. Index terms: Dosage; Drug use; Economics; Opiates; Pain; Pharmacists; Rational therapy; Surgery; Toxicity

 

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