The efficacy of a single dose of intramuscular
ketorolac 10 mg or 90 mg was compared with
pethidine 100 mg in a randomized double-blind study in 121 patients reporting at least moderate
pain due to
renal colic.
Pain was assessed before
drug administration, and then at 1 hour and 12 hours after the dose. Sedation was also assessed at these times, and additionally at the 12 hour assessment the time of the next
analgesic dose was recorded. At 1 hour after dosing,
pain scores had decreased in all groups; the largest decrease was seen in the
ketorolac 90 mg group. The difference in the decrease was significant between the two
ketorolac groups, but the differences between
ketorolac and
pethidine were not significant. Fewer patients in the
ketorolac 90 mg group (17%) required a further dose of
analgesic within 10 hours than in either the
ketorolac 10 mg group (39%) or the
pethidine 100 mg group (47%). The difference between
ketorolac 90 mg and
pethidine 100 mg was statistically significant. At both assessment times the proportion of patients with no sedation was higher in the two
ketorolac groups than in the
pethidine group. The overall incidence of adverse events was low with all drugs, notably so for the occurrence of
vomiting after
ketorolac. The results of the study show that intramuscular
ketorolac is efficacious in the treatment of
renal colic.