Pain in Emergency Medicine: The Importance of Rapid Analgesia in the Emergency Department
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.12775/QS.2026.73.75123Keywords
acute pain, emergency department, rapid analgesia, oligoanalgesia, multimodal analgesia, emergency medicine, pain assessmentAbstract
Background: Acute pain is one of the most common and clinically important problems in emergency medicine. Despite available pharmacological and non-pharmacological treatments, pain is frequently underestimated, undertreated, delayed, or insufficiently reassessed. This persistent phenomenon, known as oligoanalgesia, may adversely affect patient comfort, satisfaction, diagnostic cooperation, and the quality of emergency care.
Aim: This narrative review evaluates current approaches to rapid analgesia in the emergency department, focusing on early pain assessment, reassessment, multimodal analgesia, opioid-sparing strategies, and organizational barriers to effective pain management.
Materials and Methods: A narrative review of full-text scientific literature published between 2017 and 2026 was conducted. The literature search focused on acute pain, emergency department, rapid analgesia, oligoanalgesia, pain assessment, multimodal analgesia, and emergency medicine.
Results: Evidence indicates that inadequate assessment, delayed treatment, and insufficient reassessment remain major barriers to effective pain management. Structured assessment, early analgesic intervention, reassessment, multimodal strategies, and appropriate use of non-opioid and opioid-sparing approaches may improve pain management. Individualized strategies are particularly important for children, older adults, pregnant patients, and patients with complex or life-limiting conditions.
Conclusions: Rapid analgesia should be an integral component of emergency department care. Systematic assessment, timely treatment, reassessment, multimodal analgesia, staff education, and structured clinical pathways may reduce oligoanalgesia and improve patient-centered outcomes.
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Copyright (c) 2026 Marek Wojciechowicz, Krzysztof Rogiński, Julia Kujawa, Miłosz Rogiński, Mikołaj Kaczmarkiewicz, Karolina Rogińska, Jakub Serafin, Kacper Drążkowski, Zofia Tetłak, Dominika Ossowska
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