Background & Objectives: Uncontrolled postoperative pain can cause many adverse effects such as tachycardia, hypertension, myocardial ischemia, decreased alveolar ventilation and poor wound healing. In this study we evaluated the preoperative administration of pregabalin in relieving postoperative pain after lower limb orthopedic surgery and reducing the need for opioids and their possible side effects.

  Methods: This study is a randomized, double-blind clinical trial. It was performed on 60 patients under lower limb surgery in Fatemi Hospital. Patients were randomly allocated to two groups, one group has received a 150 mg pregabalin capsule 2 hours before surgery and the other group has received placebo as a control. In both groups at 2, 6, 12 and 24 hours after surgery, the patients were evaluated and the pain score by a visual analogue scale (VAS), the score of sedation by Ramsay sedation scale and the incidence of nausea and vomiting were recorded in the checklists. Then, the data were analyzed by SPSS v16. P <0.05 was considered significant.

  Results: In this study 51.7% of patients were male and 48.3% were female. The age averages of these patients in both group were similar (p=0.578). Visual analog pain scores at 2 h after surgery reduced in pregabalin group (p<0.0001). Similar reduction was observed in other studied hours (p<0.0001) too. In the pregabalin group nausea and vomiting scores at all hours, sedation levels at 2 h and 6 h postoperation, and pethidine consumption in all hours have significantly been reduced (p<0.05).

  Conclusion: Preoperative administration of pregabalin is an effective method for reducing postoperative pain for patients, and with reduction in pethidine consumption, it can decrease problems of opioid usage.