OBJECTIVES : As perioperative analgesics were less regulated in China, their clinical utilization is short of report in literature. This study aimed to analyse the current situation of perioperative analgesics use in China by selecting Dezocine, Flurbiprofen and Parecoxib as representative drugs

METHODS : Data were extracted from the Hospital Information System Database from 18 hospitals in 14 provinces in China, from 2015 to 2018. Variables of data include: hospital ID, patient ID, hospitalization ID (first hospitalization), type of disease, type of surgery, date of surgery, name of drug, and date of prescription. The clinical use of the three analgesics was analysed from three aspects: overall use of analgesics during perioperative period, overview of delivery pathways, and prescription trend of three drugs.

RESULTS : From 2016 to 2018, the number of patients, hospitalizations and prescriptions using Flurbiprofen during perioperative period in the sample hospitals were the highest, followed by Parecoxib and Dezocine in sequence. In 2016, 2017 and 2018 respectively, the total prescription times of Dezocine were 23,089, 36,643 and 38,688; Flurbiprofen as 45,277, 61,735 and 53,917; and Parecoxib as 42,390, 50,790 and 45,671. In different surgical fields, the use of three drugs was different. The main routes of administration of Dezocine were intramuscular injection and intravenous injection, accounting for 42.33% and 41.59% of the total prescriptions. Similarly, the main routes of administration of Parecoxib were also intramuscular injection and intravenous injection, accounting more than 50% and 40.87% respectively. But intravenous Flurbiprofen accounted for more than 95% delivery pathways.

CONCLUSIONS : There was irrational use of the three drugs during perioperative period in clinical use. It is suggested that government should further standardize the rational use of perioperative analgesics to save healthcare resource and improve clinical effectiveness.