Meptazinol versus pethidine for postoperative pain relief in children

Abstract

A double-blind, randomised, clinical trial was undertaken comparing intramuscular meptazinol (1 mg/kg) with intramuscular pethidine (1 mg/kg) for the relief of post-tonsillectomy pain, in 100 children under 15 years of age. Pethidine provided better analgesia in those patients who were awake after 30 minutes, but thereafter no statistically significant differences between the degree of pain relief could be detected. Meptazinol caused less sedation than pethidine, in that significantly more patients were awake after 40 minutes in the meptazinol group. The incidence of nausea and vomiting was similar in patients of both groups.