Abstract

Objective: The objective is to investigate factors affecting the frequency and use of analgesics in patients with acute abdominal pain by emergency physicians in Turkey.

Material and Methods: The cross-sectional analytic study was performed between June and September 2006. The population of the study included the attending emergency physicians and residents at university hospitals in Turkey. The surveys were returned by mail after having been filled out by twenty-four departments participating in the study.

Results: Two hundred sixty three of 322 emergency physicians completed the survey (coverage rate: 81.6%). Twenty five percent (n=66) of 263 physicians were emergency medicine specialists. Fifty four percent (n=143) of the participants stated that the use of analgesics “repressed the physical examination findings”. Rates in analgesic use also increased in parallel with increases in physicians' ages and were found statistically significant. Moreover, a regional difference among rates of analgesic use was observed (p<0.05).

Conclusion: Rates of administering analgesics for patients with acute abdominal pain by university emergency physicians in Turkey are quite low. Physicians' ages, regional location of the hospitals, physical examination findings, radiological examination results, quality and level of pain and received diagnosis are the factors affecting the decision-making process in administering analgesics.