Analgesia in paediatric acute pancreatitis: A scoping systematic review

Abstract

Objective: Acute pancreatitis (AP) is a common paediatric condition, yet there is little data to support optimal analgesic practice. The aim of this scoping review was to report analgesic practice, investigate trends in analgesic strategy and evaluate the impact of analgesic modality on outcomes.

Methods: A systematic search of Medline, Embase, CENTRAL, Pubmed Central and Google Scholar was performed by two independent investigators. This review adhered to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses extension for Scoping Reviews checklist.

Results: Three retrospective cohort studies, all conducted in North America, reported on analgesic practice in paediatric AP. The studies included 658 patients (median age, 12 years; female sex, 57%; non-biliary aetiology, 85.9%). Overall, analgesia was administered in 67% of patients, including opioids in 59.5% (43.8%-71.4%). Rates of acetaminophen (17.9% and 77.7%) and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (7.7% and 40.2%) were reported in two studies. Two studies reported reducing rates of opioid administration or reduced duration of opioid administration since 2017 and 2014, respectively. One study did not find any correlation between opioid administration and sociodemographic factors, length of stay or admission to intensive care units. No studies reported on complications or quality of life. No studies investigated non-medical modalities. There were no long-term data on analgesic use post-discharge.

Conclusions: Opioids are the mainstay of pain treatment in paediatric AP in North America. However, factors that influence the analgesic type, the impact of analgesic modality on the post-pancreatitis outcome and long-term analgesic use constitute a knowledge gap. Future studies are needed to inform analgesic use in paediatric AP.

Keywords: intensive care unit; length of stay; morbidity; opioids; pain.