Evidence map›Paper›PMID 30221175›Full record

ReviewBurns & trauma2018

Effect of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs on post-surgical complications against the backdrop of the opioid crisis.

Hannah Zhao-Fleming, Audrey Hand, Kelly Zhang, Robert Polak, Armand Northcut, Daron Jacob, Sharmila Dissanaike, Kendra P Rumbaugh

Open access · diamondAbstract readReview
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Review in Burns & trauma, 2018. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 30 papers, 4 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
30citing papers in PubMed, 4 pooled it
3.9field-weighted citation impact, top 6% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

30 citing papers in PubMed, 4 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 78 citations in OpenAlex.

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  7. Carbamazepine improves perioperative outcomes in patients with tentorial meningiomas.Frontiers in pain research (Lausanne, Switzerland) · 2026
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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

8 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.

Hannah Zhao-Fleming1Department of Surgery, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, 3601 4th Street, STOP 8312, Lubbock, TX 79430 USA.ORCID 0000-0001-9406-079X
Audrey Hand1Department of Surgery, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, 3601 4th Street, STOP 8312, Lubbock, TX 79430 USA.
Kelly Zhang1Department of Surgery, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, 3601 4th Street, STOP 8312, Lubbock, TX 79430 USA.
Robert Polak1Department of Surgery, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, 3601 4th Street, STOP 8312, Lubbock, TX 79430 USA.
Armand Northcut1Department of Surgery, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, 3601 4th Street, STOP 8312, Lubbock, TX 79430 USA.
Daron Jacob3School of Medicine, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, Lubbock, TX USA.
Sharmila Dissanaike1Department of Surgery, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, 3601 4th Street, STOP 8312, Lubbock, TX 79430 USA.
Kendra P Rumbaugh1Department of Surgery, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, 3601 4th Street, STOP 8312, Lubbock, TX 79430 USA.
Texas Tech University · US

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

The USA is currently going through an opioid crisis, associated with tremendous economic and societal impacts. In response to this crisis, healthcare professionals are looking for alternative pain management methods, and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) are a sensible choice because of their effectiveness after surgical procedures. However, before surgeons start prescribing NSAIDs in place of opioids, it is crucial to first understand their potential post-surgical complications. The goal of this review is to summarize the data obtained through both animal and human studies, which suggest how a dramatic increase in NSAID use may affect these post-surgical complications. We first provide a short review outlining the mechanisms of action of NSAIDs, followed by a summary of animal studies, which show a trend towards the negative effects of NSAIDs on wound healing and an association between NSAID use and wound infections. Lastly, we present evidence from human studies on the association of NSAIDs with the following complications: anastomotic leaks, necrotizing soft tissue infections, bleeding complications, orthopedic injuries, wound healing, and cancer care. The human studies are much more variable in their conclusions as to whether NSAIDs are beneficial or not, with the only strong evidence showing that NSAIDs inhibit bone healing. This may partially be explained by male and female differences in response to NSAIDs as many animal studies showing the inhibitory effects of NSAIDs were performed on females, while all the human studies were performed with both sexes. We conclude that strong caution should be used in the prescription of NSAIDs, especially in female patients, but larger scale studies are warranted before solid recommendations can be made.

Indexed as

Anastomotic leaksanti-inflammatoryBleedingCancer careNecrotizing soft tissue infectionsnon-steroidalNSAIDsOpioidsOrthopedic injuriesWound healing

Identifiers

PMID30221175
PMCPMC6136175
OpenAlexW2889037211

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.