Efficacy of intermittent epidural morphine following posterior spinal fusion in children and adolescents

Postoperative pain is a distressing and disabling feature of scoliosis surgery. Epidural morphine has recently been advocated to reduce the frequency and severity of postoperative pain in adults. A retrospective study of 35 patients was conducted to determine whether epidural administration of morphine is useful in the management of postoperative pain in children and adolescents following posterior spinal fusion. The derived data included dose and frequency of narcotic administration on the day of surgery and during the subsequent three days. On the first postoperative day, the total morphine given averaged only 16.4 mg in patients receiving epidural morphine compared to 27 mg in those receiving only conventional parenteral morphine. Similar significant differences persisted through the second postoperative day. Intermittent epidural injection of small doses of morphine can give satisfactory and prolonged analgesia for early postoperative pain management.