Abstract

A short cut review was carried out to establish whether intravenous non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs are better than opioids at reducing pain in renal colic. 230 papers were found, of which five presented the best evidence to answer the clinical question, these have been meta-analysed by the Cochrane collaboration. The results of the meta-analysis are presented here. The author, date and country of publication, patient group studied, study type, relevant outcomes, results, and study weaknesses of these best papers are tabulated. The clinical bottom line is that intravenous NSAID’s should be the first-line treatment for patients presenting to the ED with acute renal colic.