Pain Management After Shoulder Capsular Release Surgery

Surgical Approach and Pain Management

Arthroscopic approaches generally provide lower pain scores on postoperative days 1-2 compared to mini-incision approaches 1
Effective multimodal analgesia significantly impacts pain duration and intensity 1, 2, 3

The American Society of Anesthesiologists recommends a combination of paracetamol and NSAIDs or COX-2 inhibitors started pre-operatively or intra-operatively and continued postoperatively 3, 4
IV dexamethasone is recommended to increase the duration of regional anesthesia and decrease supplemental analgesia requirements 3, 5
Continuous interscalene block is preferred over single-shot interscalene block for extended pain relief 3, 4
Regular administration of paracetamol and NSAIDs/COX-2 inhibitors is crucial to avoid significant pain increases after regional block resolution 3, 5
Transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS) may provide lower pain scores at 12 hours and on postoperative day 7 1

Early vs. delayed motion rehabilitation protocols show no significant difference in pain scores 7-10 days postoperatively 1