Study of Low-Dose Ketorolac to Reduce Long-Term Opioid Use After Orthopaedic Trauma Surgery

What this Trial Is About

Researchers are evaluating whether a low-dose, short-term use of ketorolac, a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug NSAID, can reduce chronic opioid use in adults with orthopaedic trauma. The trial aims to find out if scheduled ketorolac during the first five days after surgery, combined with standard pain care, lowers the chance of ongoing opioid use six months after injury. The study also investigates if ketorolac improves patients functional response to pain and how early pain control may affect longer-term opioid use and recovery. Participants are randomly assigned to one of two groups one receives ketorolac intravenously every six hours for up to five days during the perioperative period, switching to oral ketorolac if discharged early, alongside standard multimodal analgesia MMA. The other group receives only the standard MMA as per institutional protocols. The study compares these groups to see if ketorolac affects chronic opioid use and pain recovery outcomes. During the study, patients pain levels and opioid use are tracked daily over the five-day treatment period. Functional pain responses are measured using surveys at hospital discharge and at 2 weeks, 6 weeks, 3 months, and 6 months post-injury. The main outcome is chronic opioid use at six months, with additional assessments including pain inventories, resilience scales, and opioid dose measurements. Participants are followed for at least six months to assess these effects thoroughly.

Low-Dose Short-Term Ketorolac to Reduce Chronic Opioid Use in Orthopaedic Polytrauma Patients