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Vitamin C Efficacy in Reducing Post Operative Pain

The Role of a Single Oral Dose (2g) of Vitamin C in Reducing Intensity of Pain and Opioids Consumption in Patients Undergoing Laparoscopic Cholecystectomy. A Randomized, Double-blinded, Placebo-controlled Study

Status
Completed
Phases
Phase 4
Study type
Interventional
Source
ClinicalTrials.gov
Registry ID
NCT01322061
Enrollment
80
Registered
2011-03-24
Start date
2010-11-30
Completion date
2011-07-31
Last updated
2012-01-09

For informational purposes only — not medical advice. Sourced from public registries and may not reflect the latest updates. Terms

Conditions

Gallbladder Inflammation

Keywords

Gallbladder removal, acute cholecystitis, Laparoscopic cholecestectomy

Brief summary

Opioids are the corner stone in the treatment of post operative pain. Because of the several side effects of opiods, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs are usually added postoperatively to decrease the total requirements of opioids. However, non steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs have side effects of their own. Vitamin C, with virtually no side effects when used on short-term basis, has been shown to have promising analgesic effects in chronic pain and acute pain relief following orthopedic surgeries. The investigators propose to assess the role of a prophylactic single dose (2g) of vitamin C in reducing the intensity of pain and the consumption of opioids in patients undergoing laparoscopic cholecystectomy at AUB-MC. All eligible patients undergoing laparoscopic cholecystectomy at AUB-MC will be included in the study. Patients will be randomized into two groups to receive either single dose oral vitamin C (2g) (Study Group) or identically looking placebo capsules (Control Group). Both the patients and the investigation team will be blinded to the type of intervention. Intraoperative anesthesia management will be similar for both groups. Postoperative pain control will be achieved with patient controlled analgesia via a patient controlled morphine pump in both groups. At several time intervals and up to 24 hours postoperatively, the pain scores, morphine consumptions, nausea/vomiting scores, sedation scales, itching scales, and patient satisfaction scales will be obtained for all patients. Also, the peak vitamin C concentration will be determined for each patient. Patients demographics will be obtained and compared between both groups. The differences in pain scores, morphine consumptions, nausea/vomiting scores, and sedation, itching, and patient satisfaction scales will be compared between the two groups with the Student-t test, the analysis of variance, the Fisher exact test, and the Kruskal-Wallis test. The peak vitamin C plasma concentration will be correlated with the pain scores in each group using regression analysis. This study will provide relevant information on whether a single dose (2g) of vitamin C can reduce morphine requirements and non steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs need and thus eliminating their side effects in patients undergoing laparoscopic cholecystectomy.

Interventions

DRUGAscorbic Acid

Effervescent,1000mg/tablet, 2000 mg dissolved in 50ml water, the drug will be given once, one hour prior to surgery

Sponsors

American University of Beirut Medical Center
Lead SponsorOTHER

Study design

Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Intervention model
PARALLEL
Primary purpose
TREATMENT
Masking
TRIPLE (Subject, Caregiver, Investigator)

Eligibility

Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
18 Years to 75 Years
Healthy volunteers
No

Inclusion criteria

* Patients of both gender * Between 18-75 years old * ASA class I, II, or III * Scheduled to undergo laparoscopic cholecystectomy

Exclusion criteria

* Intake of anti-inflammatory drug in the past 24 hr * Allergy to morphine * History of chemical dependence * Chronic pain state * Inability to use PCA pumps * History of obstructive sleep apnea * History of severe asthma * History of COPD * History of gastroesophageal reflux disease

Design outcomes

Primary

MeasureTime frameDescription
total morphine consumptiontotal morphine consumption in 24 hoursDuring their stay in the PACU (Post Anesthesia Care Unit), patients in both groups will be started on a morphine IV PCA pump that is programmed to deliver on patient's demand 1mg every 6 minutes with a total limit of 30mg every 4 hours for post operative relief.Patients will be followed up after discharge from PACU and morphine consumption will be recorded

Secondary

MeasureTime frameDescription
sedation score on the Ramsey scaleSedation score will be measured in PACU and up 24 hours upon discharge from PACU
incidence of nausea and vomitingNausea and vomiting incidence will be monitored in PACU and up 24 hours upon discharge from PACUNausea/Vomiting will be monitored using Verbal Rating Score (VRS). The number of vomiting episodes will be recorded. Episodes of vomiting occurring less than 5 min-apart will be considered as one episode.
Incidence of itchingItching incidence will be measured in PACU and up 24 hours upon discharge from PACU
patient satisfaction scalepatient satisfaction scale will be measured in PACU and up 24 hours upon discharge from PACUPatient satisfaction scale measures the overall patient's satisfaction regarding the post-operative experience in terms of pain managment. The scale is divided into four main categories: Excellent, Good, Fair,Poor.
Pain score on the Visual Analog ScalePain will be measured in PACU and up to 24 hours upon discharge from PACUDuring their stay in the PACU, the incisional, visceral and shoulder pain intensity for each patient will be measured using Visual Analog Scale (VAS)and/or Verbal Rating Score.

Countries

Lebanon

Outcome results

None listed

Source: ClinicalTrials.gov · Data processed: Feb 4, 2026