Acute renal colic is one of the common causes of referral to the hospitals. The aim of this study is to compare the efficacy of nebulized fentanyl with that of intravenous ketorolac in renal colic patients.

This double-blinded clinical study included 186 patients with acute renal colic who were referred to the emergency department of Besat Hospital, Iran. Patient selection. After selecting patients, according to study inclusion and exclusion criteria, they were divided into 2 groups of 93 using random block allocation method. The patients in the groups were treated with either nebulized fentanyl or intravenous ketorolac. The severity of pain was measured using the Numeric Pain Rating Scale (NPRS) of pain. The severity of pain at different times and demographic data were recorded.

One hundred and thirty four males and 52 females with a mean age of 42.95 ± 13.13 years were included in the study. The two groups were matched in terms of age, sex, and the severity of the pain before the treatment. Fifteen minutes following the treatment, the severity of pain was decreased in the ketorolac group but did not change in the nebulized fentanyl group. Thirty minutes after the administration of the drug, the severity of pain in the nebulized fentanyl group decreased. At any time, the severity of pain in the ketorolac group was lower than that of the nebulized fentanyl group.

Intravenous ketorolac had better analgesic effects in renal colic patients compared with nebulized fentanyl. Further studies that include complications and combinational therapy are required.