Nalbuphine for analgesia after fracture surgery and its effect on circulating inflammatory factors

The present study evaluated the use of nalbuphine for analgesia after fraction reduction surgery. Eighty lower limb fracture patients needing open reduction and internal fixation were selected in the First People's Hospital of Jingzhou from January 2015 to December 2015. Patients were randomly divided into observation and control groups (with 40 cases in each). After surgery, the patients in the observation group were treated with nalbuphine (2 mg/kg) for patient-controlled intravenous analgesia (PCIA), while sufentanil (2.5 µg/kg) was used for patients in the control group. The analgesia treatment lasted for 48 h after surgery. Changes in inflammatory factors and catecholamine hormones during the observation period were determined and compared between the groups. Pain, sedation scores and the number of times the analgesia pump was used were recorded at different time-points. Additionally, the life and sleep qualities and any adverse reactions were also recorded. Our results showed that after the operation, the levels of interleukin-6 (IL-6), tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), interleukin-1 (IL-1), high-sensitivity CRP (hs-CRP) cortisol, adrenaline epinephrine (AD) and norepinephrine (NE) were significantly lower in the observation group than in the control group (P<0.05). Pain and sedation scores of patients in the observation group were better than those in the control group at all time-points after operation (P<0.05). Life and sleep qualities of patients in the observation group were also better than those in the control group (P<0.05). Finally, the rates of nausea, vomiting, dizziness, lethargy, urinary retention, skin itch and constipation were significantly lower in the observation group than in control group (P<0.05). Based on our findings, the application of nalbuphine for analgesia in patients with fracture surgeries can reduce the levels of inflammatory cytokines, improve the analgesic effect, bring beneficial sedative effects and reduce the occurrence of adverse reactions.