Can you treat pain without opioids?
Following on from the isoflurane shortage in the UK our Us colleagues now face an opioid shortage. Opioid free anaesthesia may well become common place in the future as our understanding of the longer term consequences of opioids increases. However how comfortable would you feel doing surgery without opioids?
There are alternatives available. Adjunct analgesic drugs such as ketamine, lidocaine and alpha 2 adrenoreceptor agonists alongside loco-regional anaesthesia techniques can all help reduce the amount of opioids required.
Even without a shortage, there are many positive effects from these techniques. If some of these protocols and techniques are something you would like to learn about contact us for further advice or training.
