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Not yet recruiting NCT07588802

Effect of Opioid-Sparing Anesthesia on Postoperative Opioid Consumption and Pain in Elderly Patients Undergoing Spine Surgery

Phase II Interventional Opoid Managment Pain Management

For patients and families

In plain language

An automatic summary of structured registry data. It is an orientation aid, not a substitute for the official protocol or a physician assessment.

What is being studied
The protocol lists: Opioid-Sparing Protocol, Routine anesthesia protocol.
Who it may be relevant to
Registry conditions: Opoid Managment, Pain Management. Basic parameters: from 65 years · All.
What needs checking
Age, condition and sex are only basic indicators. Prior treatment, laboratory values and other mandatory requirements appear in the eligibility criteria below.
Where it takes place
Center list to be confirmed — check the primary protocol.
Next step
Save the trial, show it to the treating physician, and confirm current recruitment with the study center. Costs, documents and travel →

Unsure about the terms? Read our patient guide →

Official title

Effect of Opioid-Sparing Anesthesia on Postoperative Opioid Consumption and Pain in Spine Surgery

Overview

The goal of this clinical trial is to learn if an anesthesia management strategy called opioid-sparing anesthesia could help reduce postoperative opioid consumption, pain intensity and enhance recovery in elderly patients undergoing spine surgery. The main questions it aims to answer are: Does opioid-sparing anesthesia reduce postoperative opioid consumption? Dose opioid-sparing anesthesia improve postoperative pain and enhance recovery? Researchers will compare opioid-sparing anesthesia to routine anesthesia which is used most common in clinical practice to see if opioid-sparing anesthesia lead to fewer postoperative opioid consumption and better pain and recovery outcomes. Participants will randomly assigned to one of two groups. One group will receive opioid-sparing anesthesia management , while the other group will receive routine anesthesia management during general anesthesia. Participants will provide two rectal swab samples for analysis, complete five questionnaires once preoperatively, and then complete five questionnaires daily for three days postoperatively.

Interventions

  • Drug Opioid-Sparing Protocol
    The opioid-sparing anesthesia protocol consists of continuous intravenous infusion of ketamine (5 μg/kg/min) and dexmedetomidine (0.6 μg/kg/h) during general anesthesia. If needed during surgery, rescue analgesia with dexmedetomidine (0.4 μg/kg, i.v.) or ketamine (5 mg, i.v.) may be administered as clinically indicated.
  • Drug Routine anesthesia protocol
    Routine anesthesia consisting of standard general anesthetic management per institutional practice, which include opioid-based analgesia as clinically indicated, which is fentanyl 100 μg during induction, and if needed during surgery, rescue analgesia with hydromorphone may be administered as clinically indicated.

Primary outcome measures

  • Opioid consumption [Time frame: From end of surgery to 24 hours after surgery]
Secondary outcome measures (11)
  • Pain Scores (NRS) [Time frame: From end of surgery to postoperative 72 hours]
  • Time to First Rescue Analgesia [Time frame: From end of surgery to the administration of the first rescue analgesic]
  • Total Analgesic Consumption [Time frame: From end of surgery to postoperative 72 hours]
  • Time to first postoperative flatus [Time frame: Up to 72 hours postoperatively]
  • Quality of recovery [Time frame: At 1 day after surgery]
  • Sleep quality [Time frame: From end of surgery to 3 days after surgery]
  • Postoperative anxiety [Time frame: From end of surgery to 2 days after surgery]
  • Postoperative delirium [Time frame: From end of surgery to 3 days after surgery]
  • Length of Hospital Stay [Time frame: Through hospital discharge, up to 14 days]
  • Adverse Effects [Time frame: From end of surgery to 3 days after surgery]
  • Gut microbiota [Time frame: From 1 day before surgery to 2 days after surgery]

Eligibility criteria

Inclusion criteria

  • Aged ≥ 65 years
  • Undergoing multilevel level (≥2 levels) spine surgery under general anesthesia
  • Able to provide written informed consent

Exclusion criteria

  • Diagnosed with severe cognitive impairment or psychiatric disorders that impair participation or communication
  • Pregnant or breastfeeding
  • Patients with contraindications to any of the medications in the study protocol (unstable angina, recent myocardial infarction, cerebral or aortic aneurysms, increased intracranial pressure, increased intraocular pressure, psychosis or schizophrenia, pheochromocytoma, epilepsy, second- or third-degree atrioventricular block, bradycardia (heart rate < 50bpm), liver failure, hypotension (systolic BP <80 mmHg))
  • Drug or alcohol abuse
  • Refuse to participate

Criteria are shown verbatim from the registry (in English). Final eligibility is always assessed by the study center.

Healthy volunteers: No

Study design

Allocation
Randomized
Model
Parallel assignment
Masking
Double blind
Primary purpose
Treatment

Study locations

Center list to be confirmed — check the primary protocol.

Publications

  • Xu M, Zhu R, She YJ, Sun Y, Xu L, Rosenquist R, Yao M, Han X, Xu J. Perioperative Ketamine and Esketamine for Enhanced Recovery After Surgery (ERAS): A Systematic Review. J Invest Surg. 2026 Dec;39(1):2637241. doi: 10.1080/08941939.2026.2637241. Epub 2026 Mar 11. PMID 41814842
  • Sun Y, Yao Y, Li Y, Deng W. Dexmedetomidine for opioid-sparing postoperative analgesia: a systematic review and meta-analysis. BMC Anesthesiol. 2026 Jan 13;26(1):103. doi: 10.1186/s12871-025-03606-w. PMID 41527017
  • Ervin-Sikhondze BA, Gunaseelan V, Chua KP, Bicket MC, Waljee JF, Englesbe MJ, Brummett CM. Opioid consumption in the first 30 days after surgery was independently associated with new persistent opioid use. Reg Anesth Pain Med. 2026 Mar 5;51(3):317-323. doi: 10.1136/rapm-2024-106068. PMID 39709188
  • Mathew J, Gum JL, Carreon LY, Sampedro BC, Harpe-Bates J, Hines BP, Brown ME, Daniels CL, Mkorombindo T, Glassman SD. Opioid Sparing Anesthesia for Adult Spinal Deformity Surgery Reduces Postoperative Pain, Length of Stay, Opioid Consumption, and Opioid-Related Complications: A Propensity-Matched Analysis. Spine (Phila Pa 1976). 2025 Jun 15;50(12):804-808. doi: 10.1097/BRS.0000000000005159. Epub 2 PMID 39262217
  • Yu C, Madsen M, Akande O, Oh MY, Mattie R, Lee DW. Narrative Review on Postoperative Pain Management Following Spine Surgery. Neurospine. 2025 Jun;22(2):403-420. doi: 10.14245/ns.2550410.205. Epub 2025 Jun 30. PMID 40625006
  • Chou R, Gordon DB, de Leon-Casasola OA, Rosenberg JM, Bickler S, Brennan T, Carter T, Cassidy CL, Chittenden EH, Degenhardt E, Griffith S, Manworren R, McCarberg B, Montgomery R, Murphy J, Perkal MF, Suresh S, Sluka K, Strassels S, Thirlby R, Viscusi E, Walco GA, Warner L, Weisman SJ, Wu CL. Management of Postoperative Pain: A Clinical Practice Guideline From the American Pain Society, the America PMID 26827847

Identifiers

NCT: NCT07588802 · 2026P000949

Primary sources (government registries)

View this study on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗