ArticlePloS one2021
Efficacy of duloxetine compared with opioid for postoperative pain control following total knee arthroplasty.
Article in PloS one, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 6 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled 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.
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.
Who cites it
6 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 17 citations in OpenAlex.
- Pharmacologic pain management strategies for reducing postoperative pain in total knee arthroplasty: a systematic review from molecular mechanisms to clinical efficiency.Archives of orthopaedic and trauma surgery · 2025Pooled it
- Does postoperative low-dose duloxetine provide analgesic effect and lower morphine consumption after primary total knee arthroplasty? A prospective, double-blind, randomized controlled trial.Archives of orthopaedic and trauma surgery · 2024Trial
- Variability in Self-Reported Preoperative Pain Between Clinic Visits and Day of Surgery.Cureus · 2025Article
- Antineuropathic Pain Management After Orthopedic Surgery: A Systematic Review.Orthopedic reviews · 2024Article
- Analgesic efficacy and safety of duloxetine premedication in patients undergoing hysterectomy - A systematic review.Indian journal of anaesthesia · 2023Article
- Central Sensitization Is Associated with Inferior Patient-Reported Outcomes and Increased Osteotomy Site Pain in Patients Undergoing Medial Opening-Wedge High Tibial Osteotomy.Medicina (Kaunas, Lithuania) · 2022Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
5 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundThe purpose of this study was to assess the efficacy of duloxetine as an alternative to opioid treatment for postoperative pain management following total knee arthroplasty (TKA).
methodsAmong 944 patients, 290 (30.7%) of patients received opioid or duloxetine for pain control for 6 weeks when the pain Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) score was greater than 4 out of 10 at the time of discharge. 121 patients in the Opioid group and 118 in the Duloxetine group were followed up for more than one year. Preoperative and postoperative patient reported outcome measures (pain VAS score, Western Ontario and McMaster Universities OA Index (WOMAC) score were compared. The rate of further drug prescription (opioid or duloxetine) after 6 weeks of first prescription, 30-day readmission rate, and side effects were also investigated.
resultsThere was no significant difference in pain VAS score, WOMAC Pain and Function score, at each time point between before and after surgery (all p>0.05). Fifteen (9.8%) patients in the opioid group and six (4.4%) patients in the duloxetine group were prescribed additional medication after first 6 weeks, showing no significant (p>0.05) difference in proportion. The 30-day readmission rate and the incidence of side effects were also similar (all p>0.05). There was no difference in the incidence of side effects between the two groups (p>0.05).
conclusionDuloxetine and opioid did not show any difference in pain control, function, and side effects for up to one year after TKA. Although large-scale randomized controlled trials are still required to further confirm the side effects of duloxetine, it can be considered as an alternative to opioid for postoperative pain control following TKA.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
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.