ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses the drugs include the traditional nonopioid analgesics, that is, paracetamol and nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drugs, the inhalational agents nitrous oxide and methoxyflurane, and a large group of drugs commonly called adjuvant analgesic agents or coanalgesics. These were often developed for other indications, but are very useful in the management of pain, including neuropathic pain, and central sensitization. The development of paracetamol started with the discovery of the fever-lowering effect of acetanilide, a finding that resulted in the manufacture of phenacetin by Bayer. Paracetamol should be regarded as the first-line analgesic for mild-to-moderate pain and as a component of multimodal analgesia in the treatment of moderate and severe pain. The analgesic and antiinflammatory properties of the bark of the willow and other plants have been known for centuries. The active ingredient in willow bark is salicin and it was first described in the nineteenth century.
