Enhanced Recovery After Surgery and Multimodal Strategies for Analgesia

Abstract

Enhanced recovery after surgery is an evidence-based, multimodal approach to the perioperative care of a patient undergoing surgery. These pathways seek to attenuate the stress response to surgery facilitating postoperative recovery. Analgesia is a critical component of these pathways, because optimal pain relief is critical for patients to mobilize quickly after surgery, preventing such complications as infection and thromboembolism. Traditional analgesic regimens for major surgery rely heavily on opioids to provide analgesia but can cause a wide range of serious side effects, delaying recovery. Enhanced recovery protocols should incorporate multimodal analgesic strategies that minimize opioid use and optimize analgesia.

Keywords: Enhanced recovery after surgery; Multimodal analgesia; Nonopioid analgesics; Regional anesthesia.