PCA

Commonly used abbreviation for patient-controlled analgesia.

Analgesia simply means relief of pain.

PCA is a method by which the patient controls the amount of pain medicine (analgesia) they receive.

There are a number of different PCA systems.

In the classic PCA system, the patient receives a preset dose of morphine by pressing a button on a computerized pump that is connected to an IV catheter.

With PCA the patient may receive a small continuous flow of morphine and add more morphine as needed to provide a more constant level of comfort.

Studies have shown that patients using PCA often use less morphine than do patients who are not on PCA.

In a very different type of PCA system, the pain reliever fentanyl (Duragesic) is delivered transdermally (through the skin), eliminating the need for an IV and for programming a pump.