Scientific Poster Session II - Original Research

Original Research
  Sunday, November 12, 2023
  12:45 PM–02:15 PM

Abstract

Introduction: Acute pancreatitis (AP) is a gastrointestinal condition that can cause severe pain and
hospitalization. Causes and symptoms of AP vary, and no guideline on the management of AP pain exist.
This results in approaches to treating AP pain that vary in drug class and route, and increases the risk of
inequitable care. Multi-modal analgesia (use of opioid and non-opioid analgesics) has been shown to
produce similar or better pain outcomes in non-AP conditions while reducing the risk of opioid-related
harms.

Research Question or Hypothesis: Patients hospitalized for AP have similar mean pain scores within 24 hours of the first
analgesic intervention when treated with multi-modal analgesia compared to opioid-only regimens.

Study Design: Retrospective, single-center, cohort study.

Methods: Patients admitted to internal medicine services at UI Health with acute pancreatitis between
9/2020 and 12/2021 were included. Pain assessment results were compared between cohorts determined
by analgesic administrations. Linear regression assessed for treatment effects with additional covariates. Drug choice was reviewed as a secondary descriptive outcome. Descriptive
and inferential statistics were performed using SPSS Statistics for Windows (IBM Corp).

Results: Forty-four patients were assigned to the multi-modal cohort and 50 patients were assigned to the
opioid-only cohort. Mean (SD) pain score over 24 hours following first analgesic intervention did not
differ 5.82 (2.4) vs. 5.39 (2.5) in the multi-modal vs. opioid-only cohort, respectively (p=0.4). Median
morphine milligram equivalent (MME) over the same time was lower in the multi-modal group (25 mg,
IQR 47.5) compared to 48 mg (69.4), p<0.05). There were no differences between groups in pain scores
within the first 12 hours, length of stay, or time to oral tolerance.

Conclusion: Multi-modal analgesia is associated with less opioid use for patients hospitalized with AP
with similar pain scores to those not receiving multi-modal analgesia. An opioid-sparing regimen was
effective and options to standardize treatment should be considered.

Presenting Author

Paul Stranges PharmD
University of Illinois at Chicago College of Pharmacy

Authors

Julie Jun PharmD, BCPS
University of Illinois College of Pharmacy

Emily Hanners PharmD
University of Illinois Chicago College of Pharmacy

Mathew Thambi PharmD, BCPS, MPH
University of Illinois at Chicago

Hailey Soni PharmD
University of Illinois at Chicago College of Pharmacy