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Understanding post-operative pain

Courtesy of Cheng Kuang-I, Director, Department of Anesthesia, Kaohsiung Medical University Chung-Ho Memorial Hospital

There is a foreign saying: "Fire is a good servant but a bad master." The original meaning of the Chinese translation is: "Fire is a double-edged sword," as long as you make good use of it, you can use it to cook things, or burn wood for warmth. At those times, it is a good servant. But if you do not carefully control it, you will be devoured by it. If we do not try to avoid "pain," we will be in pain for a long time.

In the past, Chinese people traditionally believed that suffering was nourishing and experiencing suffering was the only way to be a real man. In reality, these ideas are wrong. We don’t need to suffer from pain, especially postoperative pain. If neglected, pain will have harmful effects on a patient both physically and mentally. In terms of physical harm, postoperative pain may cause abnormal reactions from sympathetic and autonomic nerves, which may cause an increased heart rate, increased blood pressure or it could even impact normal respiratory functioning. It may also inhibit bowel movements and cause excretion problems. Mentally, patients may suffer post-traumatic stress effects due to excessive pain, resulting in a significant fear of any future surgeries. In addition, if pain is not managed properly, it will also reduce the patient's stamina and slow down their recovery, so it is important to have good postoperative pain control.

Modern medical science has advanced to the point where a variety of pain management options are available in postoperative pain clinics. In the past, patients were given a single method of postoperative pain control, such as Patient-Controlled Analgesia, short-acting pain injections, or a peripheral nerve block. The newest pain management method, Multimodal Pain Management, combines multiple pain management modalities to achieve the optimal medication dosages for pain relief while reducing the side effects of each medication. As long as people consult with their doctors before surgery, they can choose the appropriate method to achieve postoperative pain control, which will speed up their recovery and reduce the burden on their caregivers. This is a win-win-win situation for patients, families, and hospitals, conducive to a happy and healthy postoperative life.

 

POSTED FROM Health Care Network https://www.healthnews.com.tw/article/39254