analgesic stepladder
Last reviewed 01/2018
Pain may be optimally controlled by employing a step by step approach to drug therapy.
The analgesic stepladder consists of:
- non-opioid analgesics as the bottom rung:
- aspirin
- paracetamol
- NSAIDS
- weak-opioids +/- non-opioid:
- codeine
- strong-opioid +/- non-opioid:
- morphine