Evaluation of Analgesics by the Rating of Patient Behavior

Abstract

Analgesic drugs were evaluated in postoperative patients by rating different categories of patient behavior. These ratings appeared to be more sensitive than the patient''s verbal response which was determined concomitantly. A difference in the effectiveness of the analgesics tested was indicated. Although the analysis shown in table 5 does not show significant differences between the low potency analgesics, the ranking suggest that they could be differentiated with larger numbers of patients. Rating scales for patient behavior can be adapted to measure other responses to drugs which do not have readily available parameters for measurement.