Remifentanil versus fentanyl for intravenous patient-controlled labour analgesia: An observational study

Abstract

Purpose: We undertook a retrospective study to compare the analgesic efficacy and effects on neonatal outcome of administering either remifentanil or fentanyl intravenous patient-controlled analgesia (IVPCA) during labour. Methods A five-year retrospective cohort study was undertaken of women with more than 24 weeks of gestation who had received either IVPCA remifentanil or fentanyl for labour analgesia at Mount Sinai Hospital. The sampling timeframe was from November 2005 to March 2010. The standard IVPCA regimen for the remifentanil group onsisted of a PCA bolus 0.25 μg·kg -1 with a lockout interval of two minutes, a four-hour limit of 3 mg, and a background infusion of 0.025-0.05 lgμkg -1μmin -1, whereas the standard IVPCA regimen for the fentanyl group consisted of a PCA bolus 25-50 lg with a lockout interval of three to six minutes and a four-hour limit of 1-1.5 mg. The following data were compared: maternal hourly pain scores (verbal pain score scale 0-10), sedation scores (scale 0-3), adverse effects, and neonatal outcomes. Mixed linear modelling was used to analyze longitudinal data on pain scores over time. The exact Wilcoxon test and the Fisher's exact test were used for other comparisons. © 2011 Canadian Anesthesiologists' Society.