comparison of the analgesic effects of post-operative morphine, pre-emptive and post-operative paracetamol in septorhinoplasty surgery

background: according to previous studies there are some different opinions on the pre-emptive effects of paracetamol in controlling post-operative pain, we aimed to compare the analgesic effects of pre-emptive paracetamol with post-operative paracetamol and morphine in patients undergoing septorhinoplasty. materials and methods: a hundred and six patients aged 15 to 50 were divided into 3 groups. one received 1 g paracetamol 30 minutes before the operation, another group received 1 g paracetamol after the surgery and the control group received 3 mg morphine sulfate in the recovery room after the surgery. the pain severity was recorded for each patient using a 10 slot table. any signs of nausea and vomiting (n/v) or apnea were closely observed and recorded. patients with pain score 5 or more received 2 mg morphine intravascularly. results: there was not any significant difference between the groups in total pain score and n/v (p>0.05). post-operative morphine intake was significantly lower in pre-emptive group (p<0.05). none of the patients experienced apnea during the study.  conclusion: we concluded that pre-emptive paracetamol can lower the opium consumption in post-operative period but pre-emptive paracetamol cannot reduce the post-operative acute pain noticeably.