This study will evaluate the benefits of placing an analgesic pain pump in laparotomy
incisions with the addition of intravenous/oral pain medications as needed versus using
solely intravenous and oral pain medications as needed for post-operative pain management.
The goal of this study will be to decrease the usage of narcotics in post-operative
laparotomy patients by providing local incision pain relief. This will be a double blinded
randomized control study with placebo with two groups of patients: One with a local
anesthetic infusion pump filled with Bupivacaine, a local anesthetic, after laparotomy and
the other group with an infusion pump filled with normal saline. The pain pumps will be
placed in the OR. Post-operatively, all patients will have the standard pain regimen
available to them during their stay. Surgeons will monitor the patient for 4 days
post-operatively and the infusion pain pump will be removed on post-operative day 4.
Investigator will then look back through each patient's records and gather the amount of pain
medications that they requested during their stay. Both groups will then have their data
collected in the same manner and placed for data analysis. - The standard pain regimen will
include a morphine IV 4mg every 4 hours and Hydrocodone-acetominophen 5/325 Q6H PRN. If a
patient controlled analgesia infusion pump is needed this will be considered a need for
increase in pain management. Every patient will be started on this pain regimen post
operatively. During their stay, If the patient requires an increase in their pain medication,
the supervising attending will determine which drug will be added in improve their pain. At
the end of the patients stay, the amount of narcotic usage will be compiled and turned into
morphine equivalents in order to compare them with the control group.