A recent review concluded that adult females have higher sensitivity to both clinically and experimentally induced pain. Multiple studies have examined the impact of sex on opioid responses with disparate results.
In our previous study, we have reported that a child's race influences opioids' responses with an unequal burden of opioid-related adverse effects in white children and poorly controlled postoperative pain in African American children following tonsillectomy.
Wide variations in interindividual response and narrow therapeutic indices of opioids make clinical practice challenging as it is difficult to optimize opioid selection and dosing by proactively predicting an individual child's responses. Although opioids are highly effective in treating pain, their use frequently results in various side effects including nausea and vomiting, pruritus, constipation, sedation as well as potentially fatal respiratory depression (RD) in children. Opioids are the most common analgesics used to manage acute postoperative pain in children and adults. Opioids, Respiratory Depression, PONV, Sex Differences, Tonsillectomy, Analgesia Introduction
