How Can I Manage Pain After My Total Knee Replacement Surgery?

How Can I Manage Pain After My Total Knee Replacement Surgery?

Pain is an unavoidable side effect of any surgery, not just a knee replacement surgery. While patients are anxious to undergo surgery in order to regain back a wholesome quality life, they are often unaware and uneducated about how to manage pain post surgery. The pain is definitely here to stay for awhile and knowing how to manage pain will help you set reasonable recovery goals. In this article, we will talking about how you can manage pain better after your total knee replacement surgery.

Rest

Our body repairs itself only when we are at rest. Surgery is an extremely taxing procedure for our body. Imagine all those stresses and trauma to not just the surgical site but also to the surrounding soft tissues. Therefore, plenty of rest post surgery is extremely important for the body. As a rule of thumb, expect to be immobile for a week post knee surgery. The mass of the surrounding muscles will start to decrease in a medical phenomenon known as muscular atrophy while the knee will be unable to bear your body's weight. Therefore, do nothing but rest during the first week.

Icing

It is also during this period where pain will be at its max. Therefore, icing is crucial in helping to manage pain. Ice helps to decrease swelling and relief inflammation of the knee. It constricts the blood vessels and reduces blood flow to the area. Icing is convenient and can be done almost everywhere. When you are icing your knee, remember to elevate your knee to above your heart.

Compression

Compression stockings are important as they help to create pressure and increase blood flow in order to prevent blood clots from forming.

Compression stockings will also help to relief achiness in the leg.

Medicine

As much as you think you are Hercules, you still need pain relief medication to tide you through the initial tough period. Pain relief medications help to bring down the swelling and provide you relief during periods when you are sleeping. You do not want to lose your sleep constantly due to the pain, do you? However, do not depend too much on the medicine. When the pain gets more bearable, ditch the medication and increase your icing times.

Managing pain post total knee replacement surgery is not difficult if you follow the simple steps listed above. Be mindful not to rush through your recovery process and it may lead to long term complications.

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