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Review
. 2023 Nov;17(11):E388-E394.
doi: 10.5489/cuaj.8333.

Current advances in pain regimens for percutaneous nephrolithotomy A comprehensive review

Tomas Paneque  1 , John Richey  2 , Ahmad Abdelrazek  3 , Kevin Morgan  1 , Joseph Fitz-Gerald  1 , Seth Swinney  1 , Zachary M Connelly  2 , Nazih Khater  1
Affiliations
Review

Current advances in pain regimens for percutaneous nephrolithotomy A comprehensive review

Tomas Paneque et al. Can Urol Assoc J. 2023 Nov.

Abstract

Introduction: Percutaneous nephrolithotomy (PCNL) causes pain and discomfort after surgery. The primary causes of immediate postoperative pain after PCNL are visceral pain from the ureters and kidneys, and body surface discomfort from incisions. Acute, untreated pain has the potential to develop into chronic pain, which remains a considerable burden for the rehabilitation of patients. The goal of this review was to describe the current options for treating pain post-PCNL.

Methods: We conducted a literature review of all published manuscripts on pain protocols for patients undergoing PCNL and related topics; 50 published manuscripts were identified and reviewed.

Results: PCNL morbidity must be reduced by an appropriate management of postoperative pain. Opioids, multimodal therapy, tubeless PCNL, reduced size of nephrostomy tube, and regional anesthesia are currently available for reducing postoperative pain.

Conclusions: Implementing successful treatment strategies for postoperative pain after PCNL is key in reducing the morbidity and mortality of PCNL.

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Conflict of interest statement

COMPETING INTERESTS: The authors do not report any competing personal or financial interests related to this work.

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