Skip to main content
Key Specialties
Cardiology Diabetology Endocrinology Gastroenterology Geriatrics and Gerontology Gynecology and Obstetrics Hematology Infectious Disease Internal Medicine Nephrology Neurology Oncology Pediatrics Respiratory Medicine Rheumatology Surgery
Congress Coverage
2024 ACC Congress 2023 ESMO Congress 2023 EASD Congress 2023 ERS Congress 2023 ESC Congress
Clinical Collections
Advances in Alzheimer’s

At a glance: The ONWARDS insulin icodec trials

A round-up of the ONWARDS phase 3 clinical trials evaluating the novel weekly insulin icodec in people with diabetes.
ADVANCED SEARCH
Log in
Top
Clinical Orthopaedics and Related Research®
Published in: Clinical Orthopaedics and Related Research® 5/2010

01-05-2010 | Symposium: Current Issues in Knee Reconstruction

Postoperative Analgesia in TKA: Ropivacaine Continuous Intraarticular Infusion

Authors: Primitivo Gómez-Cardero, MD, E. Carlos Rodríguez-Merchán, MD, PhD

Published in: Clinical Orthopaedics and Related Research® | Issue 5/2010

Login to get access

Abstract

Background

Postoperative pain control is a challenge in patients undergoing TKA due to side effects and technical limitations of current analgesic approaches. Local anesthetic infiltration through continuous infusion pumps has been shown to reduce postoperative pain in previous studies.

Questions/purposes

We assessed the effectiveness of intraarticular ropivacaine infusions in reducing pain and postoperative opioid use after TKA and determined whether such infusions accelerate functional recovery of the patient and reduce length of hospital stay.

Methods

In a randomized, prospective, double-blind study, two groups were assigned: Group A (n = 25) underwent continuous intraarticular infusion with 300 mL ropivacaine 0.2% at a speed of 5 mL/hour through an elastomeric infusion pump and Group B (n = 25) had an elastomeric pump insertion with 300 mL saline solution at an infusion speed of 5 mL/hour. All patients had the same prosthesis model implanted. Parameters analyzed over the first 3 days, at discharge, and 1 month later included postoperative pain, joint function, opioid use, and length of hospital stay.

Results

All patients in Group A showed a decrease in pain intensity measured by a visual analog scale and opioid use in the first 3 days. Mean length of hospital stay was also reduced in Group A (5.72 days) compared to Group B (7.32 days). There were no device-related complications.

Conclusions

Use of an infusion pump is effective in treating pain after TKA, reducing postoperative pain and opioid use. It also improves immediate functionality and patient comfort, reducing the mean length of hospital stay, without increasing the risk of complications.

Level of Evidence

Level I, therapeutic study. See Guidelines for Authors for a complete description of levels of evidence.
Literature
1.
Alford JW, Fadale PD. Evaluation of postoperative bupivacaine infusion for pain management after anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction. Arthroscopy. 2003;19:855–861.CrossRefPubMed
2.
Baeza Gil C. Postoperative pain control in prosthetic knee replacement surgery [in Spanish]. In: Ortega Andreu M, Rodríguez Merchán EC, eds. Recambios Protésicos de Rodilla. Madrid, Spain: Ed Panamericana; 2001:35–50.
3.
Beaussier M. Frequency, intensity, development and repercussions of postoperative pain as a function of the type of surgery [in French]. Ann Fr Anesth Réanim. 1998;17:471–493.PubMed
4.
Bianconi M, Ferraro L, Traina GC, Zanoli G, Antonelli T. Pharmacokinetics and efficacy of ropivacaine continuous wound instillation after joint replacement surgery. Br J Anaesth. 2003;91:830–835.CrossRefPubMed
5.
Block BM, Liu SS, Rowlingson AJ, Cowan AR, Cowan JA Jr, Wu CL. Efficacy of postoperative epidural analgesia: a meta-analysis. JAMA. 2003;290:2455–2463.CrossRefPubMed
6.
Brasseur L, Boukhatem P. The epidemiology of postoperative pain [in French]. Ann Fr Anesth Réanim. 1998;17:534–539.PubMed
7.
Busch CA, Shore BJ, Bhandari R, Ganapathy S, MacDonald SJ, Bourne RB, Rorabeck CH, McCalden RW. Efficacy of periarticular multimodal drug injection in total knee arthroplasty: a randomized trial. J Bone Joint Surg Am. 2006;88:959–963.CrossRefPubMed
8.
Colwell CW Jr. The use of the pain pump and patient-controlled analgesia in joint reconstruction. Am J Orthop. 2004;33(5 Suppl):10–12.PubMed
9.
DeWeese FT, Akbari Z, Carline E. Pain control after knee arthroplasty: intraarticular versus epidural anesthesia. Clin Orthop Relat Res. 2001;392:226–231.CrossRefPubMed
10.
Gottschalk A, Burmeister MA, Radtke P, Krieg M, Farokhzad F, Kreissl S, Strauss M, Standl T. Continuous wound infiltration with ropivacaine reduces pain and analgesic requirement after shoulder surgery. Anesth Analg. 2003;97:1086–1091.CrossRefPubMed
11.
Hahnenkamp K, Theilmeier G, Van Aken HK, Hoenemann CW. The effects of local anesthetics on perioperative coagulation, inflammation, and microcirculation. Anesth Analg. 2002;94:1441–1447.CrossRefPubMed
12.
Hollmann MW, Durieux ME. Local anesthetics and the inflammatory response: a new therapeutic indication? Anesthesiology. 2000;93:858–875.CrossRefPubMed
13.
Horlocker TT, Hebl JR, Kinney MA, Cabanela ME. Opioid-free analgesia following total knee arthroplasty—a multimodal approach using continuous lumbar plexus (psoas compartment) block, acetaminophen, and ketorolac. Reg Anesth Pain Med. 2002;27:105–108.PubMed
14.
Isaac D, Falode T, Liu P, I’Anson H, Dillow K, Gill P. Accelerated rehabilitation after total knee arthroplasty replacement. Knee. 2005;12:346–350.CrossRefPubMed
15.
Johnson SM, Saint John BE, Dine AP. Local anesthetics as antimicrobial agents: a review. Surg Infect (Larchmt). 2008;9:205–213.CrossRef
16.
Maheshwari AV, Blum YC, Sherkhart L Ranawat AS, Ranawat CS. Multimodal pain management after total hip and knee arthroplasty at the Ranawat Orthopaedic Center. Clin Orthop Relat Res. 2009;467:1418–1423.CrossRefPubMed
17.
Nechleba J, Rogers V, Cortina G, Cooney T. Continuous intra-articular infusion of bupivacaine for postoperative pain following total knee arthroplasty. J Knee Surg. 2005;18:197–202.PubMed
18.
Perkins FM, Kehlet H. Chronic pain as an outcome of surgery: a review of predictive factors. Anesthesiology. 2000;93:1123–1133.CrossRefPubMed
19.
Rasmussen S, Kramhøft MU, Sperling KP, Pedersen JH. Increased flexion and reduced hospital stay with continuous intraarticular morphine and ropivacaine after primary total knee replacement: open intervention study of efficacy and safety in 154 patients. Acta Orthop Scand. 2004;75:606–609.CrossRefPubMed
20.
Skinner HB. Multimodal acute pain management. Am J Orthop. 2004;33(5 Suppl):5–93.PubMed
21.
Stringer BW, Singhania AK, Sudhakar JE, Brink RB. Serum and wound drain ropivacaine concentrations after wound infiltration in joint arthroplasty. J Arthroplasty. 2007;22:884–892.CrossRefPubMed
22.
Toftdahl K, Nikolajsen L, Haraldsted V, Madsen F, Tonnesen EK, Soballe K. Comparison of peri- and intraarticular analgesia with femoral nerve block after total knee arthroplasty: a randomized clinical trial. Acta Orthop. 2007;78:172–179.CrossRefPubMed
23.
Vendittoli PA, Makinen P, Drolet P, Lavigne M, Fallaha M, Guertin MC, Varin F. A multimodal analgesia protocol for total knee arthroplasty: a randomized, controlled study. J Bone Joint Surg Am. 2006;88:282–289.CrossRefPubMed
Metadata
Title
Postoperative Analgesia in TKA: Ropivacaine Continuous Intraarticular Infusion
Authors
Primitivo Gómez-Cardero, MD
E. Carlos Rodríguez-Merchán, MD, PhD
Publication date
01-05-2010
Publisher
Springer-Verlag
Published in
Clinical Orthopaedics and Related Research® / Issue 5/2010
Print ISSN: 0009-921X
Electronic ISSN: 1528-1132
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1007/s11999-009-1202-2

Other articles of this Issue 5/2010

Clinical Orthopaedics and Related Research® 5/2010 Go to the issue

Clinical Research

Proximal Tibia Osteoarticular Allografts in Tumor Limb Salvage Surgery

Clinical Research

A Useful Radiologic Method for Preoperative Joint-line Determination in Revision Total Knee Arthroplasty

Case Report

Case Report: Unicameral Bone Cysts in a Young Patient with Acquired Generalized Lipodystrophy

Journal Scan

Journal Scan: Journal of Shoulder and Elbow Surgery

Symposium: Current Issues in Knee Reconstruction

Hinged Total Knee Arthroplasty in the Presence of Ligamentous Deficiency

In Brief

In Brief: Fractures in Brief: Intertrochanteric Hip Fractures