Post-Surgery Pain: When Healing Takes Longer Than Expected
Some people undergo surgery hoping to solve a problem, illness, or dysfunction, but they end up experiencing pain that persists months after the surgery. This is known as chronic post-surgery pain, and it affects 20-30% of people undergoing common operations such as back surgery. However, this pain is not the end of the road.
There are several treatment options for post-surgical pain that do not require another surgery, but first you need to understand how this chronic pain can develop before thinking about treatment. Continue reading this article to discover how pain can stay with you long after your surgical procedure.
How Long Should Pain Last after Surgery?
Pain is common after surgery, but its expected duration depends on the procedure, the treated area, and the patient’s health. So, there is no single recovery timeline that applies to every operation. However, if pain develops or increases after surgery and continues for at least three months, then it is classified as chronic post-surgical pain.
Post-surgical pain can either be limited to the area of surgery or injury, be felt in the tissue or muscle connected to a nerve situated in this area, or referred to deeper tissues or internal organs in other areas of the body.
It is important to note that the medical definition of post-surgical pain excludes pain resulting from other causes like infection, malignancy, and pain continuing from a pre-existing pain problem.
Why Can Pain Continue After Surgery?
Pain can persist post operation for multiple possible reasons. It is most often categorized as neuropathic pain resulting from abnormal nerve damage or function happening after surgery. Depending on the type of procedure, a neuropathic component is present in 35-57% of the patients suffering from chronic post-surgical pain.
Another reason for this type of pain is the acute (and typically difficult to control) pain after the surgery sometimes transitions into chronic pain that is unresponsive to medicine. Researches have led to the belief that it is related to both peripheral and central sensitization, which is when nerves become more sensitive to pain over time.
Surgical damage triggers tissue inflammation, and inflammation causes pain which means ongoing pain signal transmission in nerve fibers. This leads to nerves becoming hyperexcitable when sensing pain at the area of the injury or surgery (which contributes to peripheral sensitization), and it can produce longer-lasting changes in the brain (which contributes to central sensitization). Thus, acute postoperative pain changes to chronic pain in some patients.
Who Is More Likely to Develop Persistent Post-Surgery Pain?
According to the International Association for the Study of Pain, the most frequent surgical procedures causing chronic post-surgery pain are breast surgery (including mastectomy and cosmetic surgery), groin hernia repair, thorax surgery (including minimally invasive procedures like thoracoscopic surgery), and the amputation of a limb or other part in the lower extremities.
Don’t Ignore Persistent Pain after Surgery
Treatment of persistent pain after surgery depends on the cause and should be individualized; it could include anything from analgesics to interventional pain procedures. The appropriate option depends on the diagnosis; no single treatment is suitable for everyone. If pain continues beyond the expected recovery period, it is advised to seek medical advice from healthcare professionals like pain specialists.
A pain specialist in Jordan can assess your case and help you identify whether your post-surgical pain is related to the healing process, a complication, nerve-related pain, or another condition. In Dr. Samer Abdel-Aziz’s pain clinic, we specialize in diagnosing your symptoms and explaining which options may be appropriate.
If you are experiencing prolonged recovery pain or need advice about post-surgical pain management, book an appointment at our clinic so we help you understand your pain and plan the next step towards relief.
🗓️ Book your first appointment here: https://samerpainclinic.com/contact-us/
🗓️ Call us at +962790922204 or contact us via WhatsApp: https://wa.me/962790922204
Feel free to email your questions or concerns to info@samerpainclinic.com
Sources:
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28681962/
https://www.iasp-pain.org/advocacy/definitions-of-chronic-pain-syndromes/
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23273105/
https://www.iasp-pain.org/resources/fact-sheets/prevention-of-chronic-post-surgical-pain
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30983589/
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31561647/
