Background: The effectiveness of the step II of the World Health Organization analgesic ladder including tramadol has been questioned recently.
Methods: Retrospective study of patients treated with tramadol admitted as inpatients to one palliative care unit between November 1, 2009, and October 30, 2012.
Results: In the study period, 730 patients were admitted and 66 (9%) of them met the criteria for inclusion; 45 (68%) continued medication with tramadol until discharge from the unit, while 21 (32%) had to switch to an opioid for moderate to severe pain. The reason for switching was uncontrolled pain in 16 (76%) patients, and for 5 (24%) patients, the switch was made for other reasons.
Conclusion: The data suggest that tramadol may have a role to play in the treatment of pain in palliative care.
Keywords: analgesic ladder; opioids for mild to moderate pain; pain; pain control; palliative care; tramadol.
© The Author(s) 2014.