Ketamine Infusion for Acute Sickle Cell Crisis in the Emergency Department
Status:
Terminated
Trial end date:
2018-05-01
Target enrollment:
Participant gender:
Summary
Pain associated with sickle cell disease is a common emergency department visit. It is also
frequently associated with a high emergency department recidivism rate for pain control and
admissions to the hospital. Opiates are considered the first line therapy for acute flares
and to manage chronic pain. This often times leads to a stigma of being "opiate seekers" or
"frequent fliers". With this study, we wish to explore whether adding ketamine to standard
acute opiate therapy (morphine or dilaudid) will decrease subsequent repeat doses of opiates
while improving the patient's perception of pain. In addition, we will be exploring whether
ketamine as an adjuvant therapy can help reduce hospital admissions for the management of
acute sickle cell crisis pain.