The anti-convulsant drug pregabalin, administered before and after knee replacement surgery, dramatically decreases pain while expediting mobility after surgery. A study presented at the September 2007 meeting of the American Society of Anesthesiologists involved 60 patients, divided into two groups, who had undergone total knee replacement. One group received [IMGCAP(1)]300 mg of pregabalin two hours before surgery and 150 mg twice a day for 14 days following surgery. Other patients were given a placebo during the same intervals. Researchers found a "significant decrease" in pain levels following surgery in the pregabalin group. Further, knee range of motion at hospital discharge was higher in the pregabalin group: 84 degrees vs. 76 degrees among the placebo patients-a level that typically takes a patient a full week to attain.
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