Impact of Opioid-Free Anesthesia on Nausea, Vomiting and pain Treatment in Perioperative Period: A Review

The use of opioids as anti-pain medications in the perioperative period is influenced by intraoperative anaesthesia. There is no conclusive evidence that intraoperative opioids decrease postoperative pain. Opioid-free anaesthesia, which combines several opioid-sparing approaches, has lowered the need for postoperative pain control by reducing the need for restricted pain relief. As a result, the goal of this study is to determine the scope of the benefits of going opioid-free throughout the perioperative period. The electronic databases Google Scholar, Science Direct, and PubMed were searched till May 2021. Analytical reviews, randomized controlled trials, and prospective studies comparing all types of intra-operative opioid general anaesthesia against opioid-free general anaesthesia were included in the study. The first measurement of the pain score at rest and one day after surgery were the key goals. Analgesia was defined as the consumption of comparable intravenous morphine after surgery, as well as rates of postoperative nausea and vomiting in the post-anaesthesia care unit one day after surgery. The opioid-free anaesthesia group had lower mean pain scores at rest at the first measurement and postoperatively than the opioid-free anaesthesia group. In the opioid group, postoperative analgesia intake of iv morphine was lower. There was a statistically significant decrease in nausea and antiemetic medicine use among patients who did not get opioids. The opioid-free group had a longer hospital stay. Opioid-free use did not demonstrate significant results in lowering pain in the postoperative period when compared to those who used opioids. It’s also linked to less nausea and vomiting after surgery.