Lamotrigine reduces total postoperative analgesic requirement: a randomized double-blind, placebo-controlled pilot study.

BACKGROUND: Postoperative pain is undertreated. Lamotrigine, a new antiepileptic drug, has analgesic properties in its antisodium and antiglutamatergic effects. It may prevent postoperative pain. This pilot study assessed lamotrigine effects on postoperative pain. METHODS: This was a double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled pilot study of 30 patients submitted to transurethral prostatectomy under spinal anesthesia and receiving 200 mg of lamotrigine 1 hour before spinal anesthesia. RESULTS: We observed a statistically significant reduction in total analgesic assumption (p < 0.01) and in visual analog scale scores at 2 (p = 0.04), 4 (p < 0.01), and 6 (p = 0.04) hours after operation. CONCLUSIONS: Lamotrigine may be an effective means of reducing postoperative pain.