Thursday, June 4, 2009

Thursday June 4, 2009


Q: Toradol (keterolac) is a very effective pain killer due to its non-steroidal anti-inflammatory property. What is another interesting use of Toradol beside its analgesic and antipyretic properties?



Answer:
It can be use as a tocolytic agent to arrest pre-term labor!

Since prostaglandin synthetase inhibitors are known to have tocolytic effect, and because short term use of less than 48 hours is of little risk to the fetus at less than 32 weeks gestation, parenteral ketorolac appears to be a viable alternative for acute tocolysis since it more rapidly leads to uterine quiescence without increasing maternal/fetal adverse effects.

Dose is intramuscularly administered ketorolac 60 mg as a loading dose followed by 30 mg every 6 hours for a maximum of 24 hours.




Reference: Click to get abstract

A Comparative Study of Ketorolac (Toradol) and Magnesium Sulfate for Arrest of Preterm Labor. - Southern Medical Journal. 91(11):1028-1032, November 1998.