Background : The purpose of this study was to assess the correlations between post operative visceral pain after laparoscopic cholecystectomy and the severity of acute cholecystitis using the Parkland grading scale.

Methods : A total of 161 patients with acute cholecystitis between 18 and 86 years of age classified according to Parkland grading scale were assessed. Patients who underwent elective laparoscopic cholecystectomy were divided into two groups according to the severity of the disease. All patients were assessed for postoperative visceral pain by measuring analgesic consumption over body surface area over time from a patient-controlled analgesic pump.

Results : We collected 122 patients who underwent surgery for Parkland grade 1 or 2 vs 39 for Parkland grade 3 or 4. Age and male gender rate were significantly higher in the severe cholecystitis group. Postoperative analgesic consumption was significantly high in Parkland grade 3 or 4 group at 2 and 6 hours after surgery than in the Parkland 1 or 2 group. High PGS grade was positively correlated with the amount of patient-controlled analgesic pump during post operative two hours.

Conclusions : For the patient with acute cholecystitis in this study, correlations of post operative visceral pain and severity of were positive. The Parkland grading scale is helpful to control postoperative visceral pain differently depending on severity of acute cholecystitis.