Post-operative Oral Morphine Versus Ibuprofen

Oral Morphine Versus Ibuprofen for Post-operative Pain Management in Children: a Randomized Controlled Study

Children 5-17 years of age who have undergo orthopedic day surgical procedures for definitive management of fractures, tendon release, etc. will be randomized to receive either ibuprofen or oral morphine as needed for pain relief for 48 hours post-operatively at home. Pain will be assessed using the self-report Faces pain scale revised (FPS-R). We hypothesize that oral morphine will result in significantly lower pain scores on the Faces Pain Scale Revised (FPS-R) compared to ibuprofen. It is hoped that the results of this trial will create a new option for post-operative pain management in children.

Inclusion Criteria:

• all children aged 5-17 years who undergo an elective orthopedic or fracture-related surgical procedure at the Children's Hospital in London, Ontario and have a same-day discharge.

Exclusion Criteria:

• known hypersensitivity to either ibuprofen or morphine
• chronic users of NSAIDS or opioids
• cognitive impairment
• poor English fluency
• pregnancy
• acute or chronic renal insufficiency
• bleeding disorder
• obstructive sleep apnea