What are the typical medications you give in the PACU?

There are many: For pain usually Fentanyl, sometimes Dilaudid, IV Tylenol. For nausea, Zofran or Phenergan and sometimes compazine, although not often because it can be a bit sedating and hangs on for a while after administration. Antibiotics will vary depending on type of surgery and surgeon preference based on area of entry/what they encountered during the case. IV fluids are usually standard I’ve found-NSS or Lactated ringers in specific.

The bigger thing to remember is that these are just general medications you may see. Each institution and surgical service will decide what medications they want their patients to receive directly post-op, but knowing your pain medications and anti-emetics and antibiotics are a good start!

Usually we give Toradol, IV Acetaminophen, Zofran and occasionally some PO Oxycodone for pain relief.

Narcotic analgesics (IV first, PO when able) and anti-emetics are the usual medications given in PACU. In recent years there has been movement toward non-narcotic pain relievers to reduce narcotic use. The medications preferred varies from region to region.

Every IV pain medication under the sun, labetalol, hydralazine, Demoral, zofran, and phenergan. Those are the typical drugs in my experience.

1. Fentanyl 25-50 mcg IV
2. Hydromorphine 0.25-0.5 mg IV
3. Morphine 2-4 mg IV. (I only use this if I need a multimodal pain management approach and their BP systolic is also above 110 (it causes vasodilation and can drop their BP. It’s not all that great on its own but as a multimodal approach it helps to potentials the others.)
4. IV acetaminophen: our anesthesia providers often give this in the OR, but if not, GREAT addition to multimodal pain management.
5. Toradol (ketorolac) 15-30mg IV. EFFECTIVE. Great addition to multimodal armamentarium !
6. Oxycodone 5mg po. I like to send them home or to floor with this on board. Gets them home more comfortably or through the admission process on the unit.
7. Ondansetron first line for nausea, but if they already got 8 mg in OR, move on to the 2nd drug.
8. Compazine - great drug for n/v. Also has some sedative effects.
9. Phenergan supp- if indicated. Many gastric sleeves have gotten this in the OR already.
10. BP meds:
Hydralazine IV
Labetalol IV

Don’t underestimate the power of a fluid “bolus” for n/v. Often the pt is dehydrated and this will reduce n/v. (A simple alcohol wipe placed on the O2 tubing near their nose helps nausea too!!)

Fentayl , hydromorphone , versed Demerol iv Tylenol , Oxcodone zofran and phenergan

Fentanyl, dilaudid, zofran, phenergan, oxycodone, IV Tylenol

pain meds, IV or oral (mainly IV), oxygen, antiemetic (zoltan, phenergen), antibiotics, IV fluids and if the patient is awaiting a bed in the PACU for a while, we restart their home meds like BP meds, siezure meds etc..

I don’t work in the PACU