A NEW ASPIRINLIKE, nonnarcotic drug may be more effective than morphine in relieving postoperative pain, according to researchers at Chicago's Northwestern University.
The new agent, ketorolac tromethamine, is currently undergoing randomized, double-blind clinical trials to assess its safety and effectiveness as a pain reliever. The compound belongs to the same class of drugs as indomethacin, which provides relief of inflammation and fever as well as easing pain.
"It [ketorolac] may prove to be a very important pain reliever, for it is at least as effective as morphine, lasts much longer when given by injection, and has few side effects," said Dorene A. O'Hara, MD, of Northwestern University, Chicago. O'Hara reported the study findings at the annual meeting of the American Society of Anesthesiologists in Las Vegas on Oct 19,1986.
Since ketorolac is a nonnarcotic drug, it may not possess the addictive potential of morphine, she said. Previous studies have demonstrated