Clonidine for pain management

Clonidine modulates noradrenergic inhibition of pain transmission. For pain management, it should only be prescribed by specialists experienced in its use.

At low doses, systemic clonidine (as a component of multimodal analgesia) can reduce postoperative pain intensity, opioid consumption and nausea. Specialist pain medicine physicians may use clonidine as an adjuvant for chronic pain. Do not stop clonidine abruptly if the patient has been taking it long term due to the risk of rebound hypertension.