The Effect of Lettuce Syrup as an Adjunct Therapy in Relieving Pain after Inguinal Hernia Surgery

Background: Pain is one of the most important and common problems that various strategies are always used to alleviate it. In order to achieve the goal of optimal pain management, various analgesics and narcotics are used, although they have significant side effects. Numerous manuscripts in Iranian Traditional Medicine have expressed the analgesic effects of lettuce. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of lettuce syrup as an adjunct therapy in pain relief after inguinal hernia surgery. Materials and methods : This study is a three-blind clinical trial. In this study, 70 patients who are candidates for groin hernia surgery referred to Valiasr Hospital were randomly divided into two groups of intervention and control. From 3 days before surgery to after surgery, lettuce and placebo syrup were prescribed and morphine was also prescribed to patients with severe pain. Pain was measured based on VAS scale in recovery and at 1, 2, 4, 6, 12 and 24 hours after surgery. Significance of variables was analyzed by independent chi-square ,t-tests and repeated measure. Results: The acute pain intensity after recovery of surgery in the intervention group was significantly decreased compared to the control group. The average pain score based on VAS scale in 24 hours after surgery was 0.68±1.94 in the intervention group and 2.75±8.13 in the control group (P<0.005). Conclusion: The results of this study showed that lettuce syrup is effective as an adjunctive treatment in reducing pain after inguinal hernia surgery.