TY - CHAP M1 - Book, Section TI - Patient-Controlled Analgesia A1 - Ciccone, Charles D. Y1 - 2016 N1 - T2 - Pharmacology in Rehabilitation AB - Patient-controlled analgesia (PCA) was first introduced into clinical practice in the early 1980s as an alternative way to administer analgesic medications. The basic principle behind PCA is that the patient can self-administer small doses of the drug (usually an opioid) at relatively frequent intervals to provide optimal pain relief.1 These small doses are typically delivered intravenously or into the spinal canal by some type of machine (i.e., pump) that is controlled by the patient. Patient-controlled analgesia has several advantages over more traditional dosing regimens. In particular, PCA systems allow the patient to better match his or her need for analgesic medication to the dose to treat a specific amount of pain at any given point in time—that is, as pain fluctuates, the patient can self-administer more or less drug to provide the appropriate level of anesthesia. PCA therefore provides equivalent or increased analgesic effects with better patient satisfaction compared to conventional analgesia.2,3 This has generated increased use of PCA in a variety of clinical situations. For instance, PCA systems are used to help manage acute pain following surgery, and they are used to treat pain in patients with cancer and other conditions associated with chronic pain.4,5 SN - PB - F. A. Davis Company CY - New York, NY Y2 - 2024/03/29 UR - fadavisat.mhmedical.com/content.aspx?aid=1180855401 ER -