NCT06935331

Prospective Opioid-Free AIS Fusion

Comparison of Opioid-Free Versus Traditional Opioid-Containing Postoperative Pain Management Pathways for Adolescent Idiopathic Scoliosis

• Status: Enrolling By Invitation
• Phase: Phase 4
• Study type: Interventional
• Enrollment: 58 (estimated)
• Sponsor: OrthoCarolina Research Institute, Inc. · Academic / Other
• Sex: All
• Age: 10 Years – 20 Years
• Healthy volunteers: Not accepted

Summary

The purpose of this study is to compare the efficacy of a multimodal opioid-free (OF) pain management protocol with a traditional opioid-containing (OC) protocol in pediatric patients undergoing instrumented PSF for idiopathic scoliosis.

Detailed description

Opioids are the most common controlled medication used medically and non-medically by adolescents in the United States. Opioid prescribing practices are inextricably linked with the ongoing public health crisis of opioid misuse in the peri-adolescent population. However, the immediate postoperative period following instrumented posterior spinal fusion (PSF) for idiopathic scoliosis represents a difficult challenge for patients and surgeons alike - particularly with regard to pain control. Opioid medications are commonly used to manage early postoperative pain in these patients, though are associated with potentially deleterious effects and remain at the center of a national health crisis. In particular for peri-adolescent patients, opioids are known to disrupt central nervous system maturation, which may lead to long-term behavioral dysfunction, including increased vulnerability to addiction in adulthood. On the other hand, it is well-recognized that inadequate pain control is associated with atelectasis, delayed mobilization, protracted hospitalization, and increased complication rates following posterior instrumented PSF for idiopathic scoliosis. Consequently, there is a rising, unmet need to develop postoperative recovery pathways for this population, aimed at efficient and safe pain management that minimizes or eliminates opioids while ensuring a positive postoperative experience for the patient. Previous studies in adult and pediatric patients have compared traditional opioid-based pain regimens to opioid-sparing regimens in the perioperative period, but have been limited by high rates of crossover, retrospective designs, reliance on indwelling pain catheters, reliance on opioids for early postoperative analgesia, and/or lack of patient-reported outcomes. While there are growing efforts to investigate and adopt opioid-free (OF) protocols in adult orthopaedic patients, such protocols have yet to be thoroughly evaluated in the pediatric population. A prior study approved and completed (Protocol# PED032) by Dr. Michael Paloski and team demonstrated that a comprehensive, multimodal, OF pain management pathway following instrumented PSF for idiopathic scoliosis results in equivalent length of stay and fewer opioids prescribed at discharge compared with a traditional opioid-containing (OC) pathway. To our knowledge, this was the first study to show that completely OF postoperative pain management is possible in this population. Additional studies, including the study proposed here, are necessary to evaluate patient-reported outcomes in this population when OF pain management is utilized and to delineate patient-specific and procedure-specific details that may predict success with an OF regimen.

Conditions

• Adolescent Idiopathic Scoliosis (AIS)

Interventions

Type	Name	Description
DRUG	Opioid-Free/Opioid-Avoidant	Managed post-operatively with an opioid-free pain regimen which will include: Intrafascial injection of clonidine, epinephrine, ropivacaine, and toradol solution, diluted to 100mL and injected during closure of wound Gabapentin PO 300 mg TID x 30 days Toradol IV dosed per body weight, max 30 mg q 6 hours for 24-28 hours Ibuprofen PO dosed per body weight q 6-8 hours once toradol discontinued and discharged home with PO tabs Acetaminophen PO dosed per body weight and discharged home with PO tabs Diazepam PO dosed per body weight during stay and discharged home with PO tabs Non-medicinal therapy: Ice, Aromatherapy, Music therapy, Pet therapy, Early mobilization and PT
DRUG	Opioid-Containing	Managed post-operatively with a traditional opioid containing pain regimen including: Intrafascial injection of clonidine, epinephrine, ropivacaine, and toradol solution, diluted to 100mL and injected during closure of wound Post-operative morphine IV for breakthrough pain Oral narcotic (hydrocodone/acetaminophen) Gabapentin PO 300 mg TID x 30 days Toradol IV dosed per body weight, max 30 mg q 6 hours for 24-28 hours Ibuprofen PO dosed per body weight q 6-8 hours once toradol discontinued and discharged home with PO tabs Acetaminophen PO dosed per body weight and discharged home with PO tabs Diazepam PO dosed per body weight during stay and discharged home with PO tabs Non-medicinal therapy: Ice, Early mobilization and PT

Timeline

• Start date: 2025-10-14
• Primary completion: 2026-12-31
• Completion: 2027-12-31
• First posted: 2025-04-20
• Last updated: 2026-04-06

Locations

1 site across 1 country: United States

Regulatory

• FDA-regulated drug study