Pain Control for Intrauterine Device Placement: A Trial of Ketorolac Prior to Intrauterine Device Placement

Overview

Intrauterine device (IUD) placement can be painful for patients during and after the procedure. Fear of pain from IUD insertion can be a barrier to obtaining this highly effective long acting reversible contraception. Currently there are no proven effective methods for reduction of pain during and after placement of modern IUDs (Mirena IUD and Paragard IUD). Ketorolac has not been studied in regards to decreasing pain during and after IUD insertion although it is used by some providers for this purpose. It is a strong NSAID that is indicated for the treatment of moderate acute pain. In the intramuscular form it has an analgesia onset of action at 30min, thus may be a plausible option for pain management in the office setting compared to oral NSAIDs, which have a longer time to onset of analgesia and have not been proven to be effective in reducing pain associated with IUD placement. The primary aim of this study is to determine whether ketorolac (Toradol) decreases pain associated with intrauterine device placement compared to placebo. We hypothesize that administration of ketorolac 30mg intramuscularly at least 30 minutes prior to IUD insertion will decrease pain scores by at least 20mm on a visual analog scale at various time points during IUD insertion when compared to placebo of normal saline injection.

Modern intrauterine devices are highly effective long acting reversible forms of contraception. The Mirena IUD is 99.8% effective and the Paragard copper IUD is 99.2% effective in preventing pregnancy (Zieman 2010). Fear of intrauterine device placement can be a barrier to obtaining this highly effective form of birth control. The current standard of care for pain management during and after IUD placement is no medication, as randomized control trials published to date have limited data regarding use of medications to decrease pain. There has been one trial to suggest that the use of naproxen with 1% lidocaine paracervical block compared to paracervical block alone may decrease pain after IUD placement in primarily nulliparous patients. However, this study was with the much wider and no longer available Dalkon Shield IUD. In addition, this study did not show any significant decrease in pain scores during IUD placement (Massey 1974). Studies to evaluate effectiveness of motrin and misoprostol have shown no significant decrease in pain scores during and after IUD insertion, although the majority of participants in these studies were multiparous (Jensen 1998, Hubacher 2006, Saav 1997). There is some suggestion that 2% lidocaine gel one minute prior to IUD insertion may have some decrease in pain, although this study was poorly designed (Oloto 1996). There have been no studies published to date regarding the use of ketorolac for decreasing pain during and after IUD placement. Ketorolac is an acetic acid NSAID that reversibly inhibits COX 1 and 2, leading to decreased formation of prostaglandin precursors, and is indicated for the use of moderate acute pain in the short term setting. Its administration in the office setting may be good option for providers since intramuscular administration leads to analgesia beginning at 30 minutes, maximal effect 1 to 2 hours after administration, and duration of analgesia approximately 4 to 6 hours for the 30mg intramuscular injection. Although there is no standard of care in regards to pain medication administration prior to IUD placement, providers at UCSD often suggest certain options. These include ibuprofen at least one hour prior to the procedure, or ibuprofen taken within a few hours after the procedure, or ketorolac injection at least 15-30 minutes prior to the procedure. It would be beneficial for providers to have an evidence based option for patients.