Effectiveness of inhaled methoxyflurane in acute pain in an emergency department - A systematic review of randomized controlled trials.
The American journal of emergency medicine · 2025-04-13 · Systematic review
Abstract
INTRODUCTION: Inhaled Methoxyflurane has emerged as a popular analgesic agent for the management of acute traumatic pain in emergency settings. The aim of this review was to assess the analgesic efficacy of methoxyflurane compared to placebo and standard analgesics. METHODS: We performed a systematic review of the literature with searches of seven databases (Medline Complete, CINAHL Complete, OVID Emcare, Embase Classic + Embase, Cochrane Library, Scopus and Web of Science Core Collection) for randomized controlled trials where patients presented to the emergency department with acute traumatic pain and were administered inhaled methoxyflurane compared to placebo or standard analgesics. The primary outcome was the effectiveness of analgesia. Secondary outcomes were adverse events and patient and clinician satisfaction. RESULTS: The literature search produced 250 results, of which six met the eligibility criteria. All six studies reported improved pain scores with pain reduction of up to -30.392 mm on a 100 mm VAS scale and - 5.75 on an NRS 0-10 point scale for the methoxyflurane groups. All six studies concluded a shorter time to obtain pain relief for patients in the methoxyflurane groups. Patients and clinicians reported higher satisfaction in the methoxyflurane groups and there was a low incidence of adverse events. CONCLUSION: Inhaled methoxyflurane provides rapid and effective pain relief for acute trauma, consistently outperforming placebo and standard treatments and improving patient and clinician satisfaction.
Abstract © the authors or publisher, via PubMed. Reuse and removal
Tags
Related articles
- A Scoping Review of Inhaled Methoxyflurane for Acute Traumatic Pain. (Mil Med, 2026)
- Pain management of adults in the prehospital setting: a scoping review. (BMC Emerg Med, 2026)
- Inhaled analgesics for the treatment of prehospital acute pain-A systematic review. (Acta Anaesthesiol Scand, 2024)
- Clinical assessment and risk stratification for prehospital use of methoxyflurane versus standard analgesia in adult patients with trauma pain. (Turk J Emerg Med, 2023)
- Effectiveness of pain management among trauma patients in the emergency department, a systematic review. (Int Emerg Nurs, 2022)
- Does Inhaled Methoxyflurane Implement Fast and Efficient Pain Management in Trauma Patients? A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. (Pain Ther, 2021)