Objective:

In this study, we aimed to investigate the effect of 2 different dosages of tenoxicam in the prevention of propofol injection pain.

Methods:

A total of 120 patients between the ages of 20-50 years who were scheduled for elective surgery were included in this prospective. Patients were randomly divided into 3 groups. Group 1 received 5 mL saline, group 2 received 10 mg tenoxicam in 5 mL saline, and group 3 received 20 mg tenoxicam in 5 mL saline intravenously as a pretreatment. Venous occlusion was applied for 60 seconds with a rubber tourniquet after the injection was completed. After injecting propofol, the pain at the injection site of the patient was questioned according to the Verbal Rating Scale.

Results:

The overall pain incidence during propofol injection was 85% in group 1, 75% in group 2, and 60% in group 3 (P = .039). While there was no significant difference between groups 1 and 2 (P=.264), there was a significant difference between groups 1 and 3 (P=.012). Moreover, there was a significant decrease in the level of severe pain in group 3 compared to group 1 (P=.008). There was no significant difference between the groups in terms of mild and moderate pain levels (P > .05).

Conclusions:

We found that 20 mg of tenoxicam pretreatment was effective in reducing the incidence and severity of propofol injection pain compared to the control saline group, but the 10 mg dose did not significantly reduce the injection pain.

Keywords: Anaesthesia, injection pain, propofol, tenoxicam