Single Dose Preoperative Gabapentin Use in Minimally Invasive Hysterectomy for Acute Pain Management

Phase 4

Completed

Conditions: Pain, Postoperative

Interventions: Drug: Gabapentin
Drug: Acetaminophen
Drug: Celecoxib

Registration Number: NCT02703259

Lead Sponsor: Christiana Care Health Services

Brief Summary: The purpose of the investigators' study is to assess the efficacy of a single dose of preoperative gabapentin within an enhanced recovery after surgery protocol in acute postoperative pain reduction for women undergoing a minimally invasive hysterectomy. Participants who consent to participate will be randomized to either a control group without gabapentin or to a study arm and receive gabapentin 600 mg prior to their planned surgery. The investigators will collect data on postoperative narcotic use, subjective pain as rated by a numeric pain scale, in addition to any adverse effects of single dose gabapentin use.

Detailed Description: Multimodal postoperative analgesia after a hysterectomy has been mainly based on a combination of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs and opioids. However, adverse effects including nausea, vomiting, sedation, and pruritus may limit use of opioids. As the side effects are dose related, minimizing opioid exposure may significantly reduce these risks. Thus, there has been an interest in evaluating preemptive as well as post-operative administration of non-opioids. Additional regimens have been suggested to minimize opioid use and its associated adverse effects including injection of local anesthetics, epidural analgesia, and anticonvulsants, such as gabapentin or pregabalin.

Gabapentin, a widely used anticonvulsant used for treatment of neuropathic pain, has recently been suggested to improve postoperative analgesia and reduce opioid requirements. Gabapentin is thought to modulate calcium channels on the presynaptic nociceptive neurons, which in turn modulate or inhibit the release of excitatory neurotransmitters from activated nociceptors. In addition to inhibiting pain transmission, gabapentin may exert an analgesic effect by activating descending inhibitory noradrenergic pathways.

Many studies have demonstrated the safety and efficacy of gabapentin for perioperative use in a variety of procedures across disciplines including thoracotomy, laparoscopic cholecystectomy, tonsillectomy, major orthopedic surgery, cesarean sections, and abdominal hysterectomy. Several randomized trials have evaluated the effects of gabapentin administered preoperatively only as well as given pre- and postoperatively for hysterectomy. In a systematic review of 14 studies conducted between 2004 and 2013, with samples ranging from 40 to 200, investigators identified 8 trials in which gabapentin was administered only preoperatively to reduce pain associated with abdominal hysterectomy surgery. Analysis of those data clearly demonstrates that preemptive gabapentin reduced the postoperative visual analog scale (VAS) pain score by approximately 50% and postoperative use of morphine by approximately 37%. The incidence of pruritus and dry mouth in those receiving preemptive gabapentin appeared similar to those receiving placebo, however there was a higher rate of reported dizziness (not statistically significant) associated with gabapentin. In contrast, multiple postoperative doses of gabapentin in addition to the preoperative dose was found to have no significant effect on VAS scores at 24 hours, thus favoring a single preoperative dose.

Although initial results have been encouraging, uptake of gabapentin in routine clinical use remains limited due to mixed results and variability between gabapentin protocols, including dosing and duration. Christiana Care Health System (CCHS) plans to implement the Enhanced Recovery After Surgery (ERAS) protocol which administers preoperative medications to reduce postoperative pain, including acetaminophen, celecoxib, dexamethasone, and gabapentin. Therefore the aim of this study is to assess the efficacy of a single dose of preoperative gabapentin protocol to reduce acute postoperative pain in women undergoing a minimally invasive hysterectomy.

Recruitment & Eligibility

Status: COMPLETED

Sex: Female

Target Recruitment: 137

Inclusion Criteria

undergoing a minimally invasive hysterectomy with surgeons operating within the Christiana Care Health System at the Newark location only.
at least 18 years of age
able to swallow tablets or capsules

Exclusion Criteria

liver failure
renal failure
prior gastric bypass
gastroparesis
recent or current regular gabapentin use
hypersensitivity to gabapentin, acetominophen, or celecoxib
procedure is converted to laparotomy for any indication. (Mini-laparotomy for specimen removal alone will not be excluded.)

Study & Design

Study Type: INTERVENTIONAL

Study Design: PARALLEL

Arm && Interventions

Group	Intervention	Description
Gabapentin	Gabapentin	As per the enhanced recovery after surgery protocol at our health institution, subject will receive oral medications prior to surgery including acetaminophen, celecoxib, and gabapentin x 1 dose given preoperatively. The number of tablets and capsules will remain identical in both study arms. Medications given include: Gabapentin 600 mg (two capsules of gabapetin 300 mg); Acetaminophen 975 mg (three tablets of acetaminophen 325 mg); Celecoxib 400 mg (two capsules of celecoxib 200 mg) = Total 3 tablets, 4 capsules
Gabapentin	Celecoxib	As per the enhanced recovery after surgery protocol at our health institution, subject will receive oral medications prior to surgery including acetaminophen, celecoxib, and gabapentin x 1 dose given preoperatively. The number of tablets and capsules will remain identical in both study arms. Medications given include: Gabapentin 600 mg (two capsules of gabapetin 300 mg); Acetaminophen 975 mg (three tablets of acetaminophen 325 mg); Celecoxib 400 mg (two capsules of celecoxib 200 mg) = Total 3 tablets, 4 capsules
Gabapentin	Acetaminophen	As per the enhanced recovery after surgery protocol at our health institution, subject will receive oral medications prior to surgery including acetaminophen, celecoxib, and gabapentin x 1 dose given preoperatively. The number of tablets and capsules will remain identical in both study arms. Medications given include: Gabapentin 600 mg (two capsules of gabapetin 300 mg); Acetaminophen 975 mg (three tablets of acetaminophen 325 mg); Celecoxib 400 mg (two capsules of celecoxib 200 mg) = Total 3 tablets, 4 capsules
Control	Acetaminophen	As per the enhanced recovery after surgery protocol at our health institution, subject will receive oral medications prior to surgery including acetaminophen and celecoxib x 1 dose given preoperatively. The number of tablets and capsules will remain identical in both study arms. Medications given include: Acetaminophen 975 mg (three tablets of acetaminophen 325 mg); Celecoxib 400 mg (four capsules of celecoxib 100 mg) = Total total 3 tablets, 4 capsules
Control	Celecoxib	As per the enhanced recovery after surgery protocol at our health institution, subject will receive oral medications prior to surgery including acetaminophen and celecoxib x 1 dose given preoperatively. The number of tablets and capsules will remain identical in both study arms. Medications given include: Acetaminophen 975 mg (three tablets of acetaminophen 325 mg); Celecoxib 400 mg (four capsules of celecoxib 100 mg) = Total total 3 tablets, 4 capsules

Primary Outcome Measures

Name	Time	Method
Subjective Pain at 24 Hours Postoperative	24 hours	Pain score assesses patient subjective pain via patient reported numeric analogue scale, range 0-10 with 0 being no pain and 10 being severe pain.
Narcotic Use at 24 Hours Postop	24 hours	Assessment of the amount of narcotic use postoperatively at 24 hours. will use opioid equivalence table to convert all narcotic use to oxycodone equivalents

Secondary Outcome Measures

Name	Time	Method
Narcotic Use at 2 Weeks Postop	2 weeks	Assessment of the amount of narcotic use postoperatively at 2 weeks. will use opioid equivalence table to convert all narcotic use to oxycodone equivalents
Number of Patient With Gabapentin Adverse Effects at 2 Weeks Postoperatively	2 weeks	Will assess for known symptoms of gabapentin postoperatively at 2 weeks. We will survey subjects regarding their experience of the following symptoms: dizziness/drowsiness, fatigue, loss of balance, blurry vision, tremulousness, swelling, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, and allergic reaction
Subjective Pain at 2 Weeks Postop	2 weeks	Assessment of the subject pain score postoperatively at 2 weeks. will use a numeric analog scale from 0-10. The pain scale ranging from 0-10 with 0 representing No Pain and 10 representing the Worst Pain Possible
Number of Patient With Gabapentin Adverse Effects at 24 Hours Postoperatively	24 hours	Will assess for known symptoms of gabapentin postoperatively at 24 hours. We will survey subjects regarding their experience of the following symptoms: dizziness/drowsiness, fatigue, loss of balance, blurry vision, tremulousness, swelling, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, and allergic reaction