A study of combined use of celecoxib and bupivacaine for pain control after craniotomy

ObjectiveTo evaluate the effects of celecoxib combined with bupivacaine on the pain after craniotomy. MethodsA total of 80 patients who underwent craniotomy were randomly divided into four groups (n=20): a control group orally administrated with placebo, a celecoxib group who orally took 2 tablets of celecoxib (200 mg per tablet, one tablet per time, twice per day for three consecutive days) before operation, and a bupivacaine group who was orally administrated with placebo and underwent infiltration anesthesia with bupivacaine before the end of surgery, and a combined group who orally took celecoxib before operation and underwent infiltration anesthesia with bupivacaine before the end of surgery. The VAS score of each group was evaluated at different time points, while adverse effects were recorded. ResultsThe combined group showed the score of VAS which were lower than those in other groups (P<0.01). No serious drug-related adverse reaction was reported. ConclusionThe combined use of celecoxib and bupivacaine can effectively relieved pain in patients after craniotomy．