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  • Are anticonvulsants a satisfactory alternative to opiate analgesia in patients experiencing pain with Guillain-Barré syndrome?

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Are anticonvulsants a satisfactory alternative to opiate analgesia in patients experiencing pain with Guillain-Barré syndrome?
  1. S F McDouall1,
  2. R C Tasker2
  1. 1Department of Anaesthetics, Oxford Radcliffe Trust, Oxford, UK; sara@mcdouall.co.uk
  2. 2Paediatric Intensive Care Unit, Addenbrooke’s Hospital, Cambridge, UK

    https://doi.org/10.1136/adc.2004.054510

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      A 9 year old girl is admitted to the paediatric intensive care unit (PICU) with a diagnosis of Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS). She has global motor weakness with an MRC power grade 3 and does not require mechanical ventilation. She has dysautonomia and remains on the PICU for respiratory and invasive arterial monitoring. During her admission she develops severe leg and back pain. Regular paracetamol and non-steroidal anti-inflammatories are ineffective. Your educational supervisor asks you whether anticonvulsants would be an effective analgesic, or whether the tried and tested opiates would be the best option.

      Structured clinical question

      In patients experiencing pain complicating Guillain-Barré syndrome [patient], do anticonvulsants [intervention] provide better analgesia than opiates [comparison] and with fewer side effects [outcome]?

      Search strategy and outcome

      Cochrane library

      Guillain Barre (MeSH–explode) and pain (explode).

      Thirteen …

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      Footnotes

      • Report by
        S F McDouall, Department of Anaesthetics, Oxford Radcliffe Trust, Oxford, UK; saramcdouall.co.uk
        R C Tasker, Paediatric Intensive Care Unit, Addenbrooke’s Hospital, Cambridge, UK

      • Bob Phillips