Such interventions would have the potential to reduce the prevalence of chronic pain in the population .
Although certain risk factors can identify individuals who are most likely to develop chronic pain , few interventions to prevent chronic pain have been identified .
To facilitate the identification of preventive interventions , an IMMPACT meeting was convened to discuss research design considerations for clinical trials investigating the prevention of chronic pain .
We present general design considerations for prevention trials in population s that are at relatively high risk for developing chronic pain .
The effects of gabapentin on acute and chronic pain after inguinal herniorrhaphy
Background and objective To find out whether preoperative gabapentin use had a favourable effect on long-term postoperative pain in patients undergoing inguinal herniorrhaphy . Methods Sixty male patients – aged 20–40 years – who were scheduled for unilateral inguinal herniorrhaphy under spinal anaesthesia  were included in this prospect i ve , r and omized , double-blind study . The patients were r and omly allocated to two groups : the gabapentin group ( n = 30 ) received single-dose 1.2 g oral gabapentin 1 h before surgery , and the placebo group received a placebo capsule instead . Spinal anaesthesia was performed with heavy bupivacaine , and all operations were performed by the same surgeon with the same technique . Postoperative analgesia was evaluated during sitting and lying with a visual analogue scale . Assessment of postoperative pain at 1 , 3 and 6 months was carried out with an 11-point numerical rating scale ; 0 indicating ‘ no pain ’ and 10 indicating ‘ worst pain imaginable ’ . Patients who had numerical rating scale scores of more than 0 were further evaluated with regard to the impact of pain on their daily activities . Results When compared with the placebo group , the gabapentin group displayed significantly lower visual analogue scale scores ( lying and sitting ) and total tramadol consumption at 8 , 12 , 16 , 20 and 24 h after surgery ( P < 0.05 ) and higher postoperative patient satisfaction scores ( P < 0.05 ) . Numerical rating scale scores at 1 , 3 and 6 months after surgery were lower in the gabapentin group than in the placebo group ( P < 0.05 ) . The number of patients whose daily activities were adversely affected by pain was smaller in the gabapentin group at the first month ; however , the two groups were found to be similar at 3 and 6 months . Conclusion We conclude that preoperative single-dose gabapentin decreases the intensity of acute postoperative pain , tramadol consumption and the incidence and intensity of pain in the first 6 months after inguinal herniorrhaphy
Such interventions would have the potential to reduce the prevalence of chronic pain in the population .
Although certain risk factors can identify individuals who are most likely to develop chronic pain , few interventions to prevent chronic pain have been identified .
To facilitate the identification of preventive interventions , an IMMPACT meeting was convened to discuss research design considerations for clinical trials investigating the prevention of chronic pain .
We present general design considerations for prevention trials in population s that are at relatively high risk for developing chronic pain .