Pain is a common reason for emergency department (ED) visits. However, studies suggest that emergency physicians may not always provide optimal analgesic treatment due to various factors, such as time constraints, demographic factors like gender and age, and concerns about opioid use. As a result, patients with moderate to severe pain often experience long delays before receiving analgesia and may even be discharged with unresolved pain or suboptimal treatment. Additionally, diagnostic procedures for patients with isolated trauma (e.g., clinical examinations, radiographs) can lead to variations in pain levels, making it difficult to assess the effectiveness of analgesia. A commonly used treatment for moderate to severe pain is intravenous opioid administration. However, this approach requires longer wait times, complex titration, and significant resources (beds, nurses, equipment), which may be limited during peak hours. While oral opioids require fewer resources, their delayed onset and limited titratability restrict their use for severe pain. The sublingual sufentanil tablet (30 mcg), delivered via a single-dose applicator, was developed for patients with moderate to severe pain in emergency or outpatient surgical settings. Its unique pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic properties could offer advantages in non-invasive acute pain management. Sublingual sufentanil received market authorization in June 2018 for the treatment of moderate to severe acute pain in adults and is already used in many hospitals. However, further studies are needed to confirm its effectiveness and potential superiority in pain management. The objective of this study is to evaluate the effectiveness of 30 mcg sublingual sufentanil in patients admitted for moderate to severe pain due to isolated trauma. This will be compared to the standard pain management protocol used in the Clermont-Ferrand emergency department, focusing on pain score variations using a numerical rating scale (0-10)
Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Purpose
TREATMENT
Masking
NONE
Enrollment
300
patient randomized in the "SST 30mcg" arm will receive a 30-microgram sublingual sufentanil tablet
patients randomized in the "SOC" arm will receive analgesic treatment according to the department's internal pain management protocol.
CHU de Clermont-Ferrand, Clermont-Ferrand
France, France
RECRUITINGTo determine the effectiveness of sublingual sufentanil compared to the standard analgesic protocol used in the department, by measuring pain scores on the Numerical Rating Scale from 0 to 10 at Hour 0 and Hour 0 +60 minutes
the efficacy of sublingual sufentanil will be measured by the difference in pain scores measured by the NRS between baseline and 60 minutes after receiving treatment NRS is a 10-point scale where 0 means no pain and 10 means the most pain
Time frame: Hour 0 ; Hour 0 + 60 minutes
Comparison between randomization groups of potential adverse effects.
Safety outcomes : The comparison between randomization groups of potential adverse effects: hypotension, bradycardia, respiratory depression, sweating, drowsiness, nausea and/or vomiting, dizziness.
Time frame: Hour 0 ; Hour 0 + 15 minutes; Hour 0 + 30 minutes; Hour 0 + 45 minutes; Hour 0 + 60 minutes; Hour 0 +120 minutes; Hour 0 + 180 minutes
Pain variation assessed at different time points.
Pain variation assessed in both groups at different time points of the study. Pain will be evaluated using the NRS, à 10-point scale, where 0 corresponds to no pain and 10 to the most intense pain.
Time frame: Hour 0 ; Hour 0 + 15 minutes; Hour 0 + 30 minutes; Hour 0 + 45 minutes; Hour 0 + 60 minutes; Hour 0 +120 minutes; Hour 0 + 180 minutes
Blood pressure variations
Blood pressure variation in patients at different time points, measured using an automatic sphygmomanometer.
Time frame: Hour 0 ; Hour 0 + 15 minutes; Hour 0 + 30 minutes; Hour 0 + 45 minutes; Hour 0 + 60 minutes; Hour 0 +120 minutes; Hour 0 + 180 minutes
Heart rate variations
Heart rate variation in patients at different time points, measured using a heart rate monitor.
Time frame: Hour 0 ; Hour 0 + 15 minutes; Hour 0 + 30 minutes; Hour 0 + 45 minutes; Hour 0 + 60 minutes; Hour 0 +120 minutes; Hour 0 + 180 minutes
Oxygen saturation variation
Oxygen saturation variation in patients at different time points, measured using a pulse oximeter.
Time frame: Hour 0 ; Hour 0 + 15 minutes; Hour 0 + 30 minutes; Hour 0 + 45 minutes; Hour 0 + 60 minutes; Hour 0 +120 minutes; Hour 0 + 180 minutes
Breath frequency variations
variation of breath frequency measured at differents time points
Time frame: Hour 0 ; Hour 0 + 15 minutes; Hour 0 + 30 minutes; Hour 0 + 45 minutes; Hour 0 + 60 minutes; Hour 0 +120 minutes; Hour 0 + 180 minutes
Assessment of patient satisfaction with pain management using a 10-point scale
Assessment of patient satisfaction with pain management using a 10-point scale, where 0 represents "very dissatisfied" and 10 represents "very satisfied."
Time frame: Hour 0 + 180 minutes
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