Improving post-op pain management in Latin America

both private and public settings, the researchers added.

They also explained that the guidelines provided by the American Society of Anesthesiologists since 1995 could serve as a base for improvements in APOP in Latin America. However, these guidelines don’t include medications that have been used for many years in most Latin countries, such as dipyrone. Additionally, not all of the guidelines or the medical literature used by doctors in the U.S. are available in Portuguese or Spanish.

Thus, the author’s recommendations were focused primarily on education. They stated it’s important to increase education, inform patients who don’t have a deep understanding of their medical conditions and develop more policies or procedures that cover all facets of pain management in postoperative settings.  

“Pain management should also be routinely incorporated into continuing educational programs,” the researchers concluded.