Patient controlled analgesia (PCA) in paediatric surgery: a prospective study following laparoscopic and open appendicectomy

Patient controlled analgesia (PCA) has not yet gained universal acceptance for the management of postoperative pain in paediatric surgery. In a prospective study we evaluated feasibility and complications of PCA following 90 cases of laparoscopic or open appendicectomy. PCA proved to be a safe and feasible method with few complications (2% of medical complications, no abort of application, 17 technical checks in a total running time of 4125 h). Acceptance by patients was high and children of all age groups worked the system properly. Assessment of application protocols showed, that the consumption of analgesics was significantly reduced following laparoscopic appendicectomy (P < 0.05). PCA is a safe and feasible method for the management of postoperative pain in children and PCA recording provides an excellent insight into the consumptional behaviour of patients, enabling staff to evaluate postoperative pain for various procedures.